EAC Holds The 7th Annual East African Community (EAC) Forum 2024 Calls for Stronger Regional Integration
By Raymond Enoch.
EAC Holds 7th The 7th Annual East African Community (EAC) General’s Forum is being held from December 10-11, 2024, at the Pullman Hotel, Upper Hill Nairobi Kenya with a call for Stronger Regional Integration.
The theme for the 2024 forum is “Towards a Resilient and Fully Integrated East Africa: Harnessing Opportunities in the Borderless Community”.
This forum serves as a critical platform for dialogue after six year’s of summit dialogue lapse – thanks to the newly appointed Secretary General H.E Veronica Nduva. Various stakeholders, including the Deputy Prime Minister of Uganda H.E Rebecca Kadaga, the Rwanda EAC Minister Hon James Kaberege, PS for EAC Kenya Hon Abdi Dubar and other senior government officials, Senior Civil Society Executives represented by Hon Suba Churchill, the private sector, and development partners were among those present. Funded by the GIZ and other partners, the EAC Annual SG forum focuses on strengthening the EAC integration agenda and addressing challenges in sectors like trade, governance, health, and gender equality. The Chief Guest, representing the President of Kenya was the Chief of Staff and Head of the Public Service Mr Felix Koske.
Key highlights of the event include:
Discussions on Regional Integration:
Topics include harmonizing tax regimes, improving legal redress for cross-border traders, initiating a Youth Desk at the Secretariat to massively ignite a Youth in Agribusiness Revolution, spurring the Innovations and Creative Industry, revolutionising the Digital and Markets landscape and operationalizing the Trade Remedies Committee.
Post-COVID-19 Recovery Strategies:
Sessions address health sector resilience, removing barriers to the free movement of goods and people, and leveraging local government policies for economic recovery.
Inclusive Governance and Rule of Law:
Focus areas include the role of local governments, youth engagement, gender equality, and strengthening regional legal frameworks.
Adoption of Recommendations:
The forum culminates in the adoption of 133 broadly actionable recommendations for advancing EAC’s integration goals, which were narrowed down to the six critical sub-themes. The new Secretary General H.E Veronica Nduva assured the participants of the Council’s commitment to fully implement the recommendations and report back progress in the next year Annual SG Forum, 2025.
The forum also includes side events, such as discussions on the EAC Gender Bill and youth engagement platforms, and a gala dinner to foster networking opportunities.
A notable highlight was the engagement of EAC Ministers and their representatives with civil society, private, and public sector groups. This interaction addressed key concerns and shared progress on regional integration issues.
Please okay this Story let me publish it
