Kenyan minister urges on EAC

The Chairperson of the East African Community (EAC) Council of Ministers, Phyllis Kandie, has called on partner states to cede part of their sovereignty to trusted regional institutions if the bloc is to remain relevant in the fiercely globalised world. Kandie, who is also Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary for East African Affairs, made the remarks yesterday in her address to the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA), currently sitting in Kampala, Uganda. “The success or failure of EAC integration is therefore going to be our collective responsibility,” Kandie said. The minister warned that as the region enters the monetary union phase and proceeds towards the political federation, moments of anxiety may occasionally be realised, leading to slower pace of implementation. “There is no doubt that one of the greatest challenges to the implementation of the directives, decisions, protocols and EALA Acts is the slow pace at which partner states are moving toward the review, amendments and harmonisation of national laws to conform to those of the Community,” the minister said. “I do appreciate that for the Assembly to effectively engage in the process, we have to continuously review and strengthen the working relations between the Assembly and the Council, not just at the regional level, but also through the co-ordination of EALA activities at the country level,” she added. On the Monetary Union, the minister implored EALA to actively engage relevant national constituencies with a view to ensuring the ratification of the protocol by July 1. Kandie reiterated that this level of support is vital for the strengthening of the integration process. “I challenge you to actively engage in the implementation of these directives. In addition, I will be counting on you to support the on-going consultations on the revised model of the EAC Political Federation,” she said. The roadmap and action plan of the political federation is due for consideration when the Summit convenes in April 2014.