Regional Chief Executive Officers from the five member states of the East African community have agreed to form a regional round table that will directly engage heads of state. The decision was made Saturday last week during the closing ceremony of the regional East African business summit in Kampala, which top executives from leading companies in the region, development practitioners and government technocrats attended. “We need a round table of CEOs to engage heads of state on issues affecting our businesses. Bringing the political leadership on board is critical for the success of business in the region,” said Charles Muchene, PricewaterhouseCoopers country leader, one of the conveners addressing the media on the Summit’s key recommendations. “We have decided that we need to make this happen before the end of the year. We need to influence decision makers in the region particularly on infrastructure because to be competitive you need good infrastructure,” Muchene added. More than 200 CEOs attended the fourth annual three day summit held July 17-19. They emphasized the urgent need for infrastructure development to enhance the region’s competitiveness, adding that poor infrastructure in the region makes the cost of doing business high and puts it at a great disadvantage in the global marketplace. Ends
