End in sight for DR Congo’s three-year quest to join EAC

Close to three years after making a formal application, the DR Congo could be officially admitted into the East African Community when Heads of State meet on Tuesday, March 29. An extraordinary meeting of the Council of Ministers that precedes the Summit started virtually early morning on Friday, March 25. The Ministers are set to consider the provisional agenda and programme of the upcoming extra-ordinary EAC Summit on the admission of the DR Congo into the bloc. The upcoming extraordinary Summit will have one major agenda, considering the issue of DR Congo admission. The recommendations of Council of Ministers are positive, according to sources, but the admission of any new member into the Community is a prerogative of the Summit. Nonetheless, sources say, next week’s extraordinary summit, if it happens, could wrap up the process that started when Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi on June 8, 2019, wrote to then EAC Chairperson, President Paul Kagame, expressing his country’s wish to be a member of the bloc. Regional leaders on February 27, 2021 considered the application by DR Congo to join the Community and directed Ministers to expeditiously undertake a verification mission in accordance with the EAC procedure for admission of new members. When, on January 17, 2022, negotiations paving way for the vast country’s admission were launched in Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, Kinshasa reaffirmed its willingness to be part of the bloc. During the January launch in Nairobi, DR Congo’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Christophe Lutundula Apala Pen’Apala, said his country was looking forward to increased trade and investment, and strengthened relations with the EAC. A few weeks later, the report of the negotiations was presented to the Council of Ministers. It is this report that Ministers will now submit to Heads of State for consideration. The leaders are expected to usher in in country’s accession phase which literally concludes the admission process. The private sector has urged Heads of State to direct relevant government bodies to fast track the admission of the DR Congo into the bloc. An opportunity for all By becoming the seventh member, the DR Congo is expected to bolster the bloc’s economic potential through various ways including opening the corridor from the Indian Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean, as well as North to South, hence expanding the economic potential of the region. Manasseh Nshuti, Rwanda’s Minister of State for EAC Affairs, earlier told The New Times that: “It will increase our total GDP from the current $193 billion by $50 billion to $240 billion, a huge economy indeed. This is good for investors who want to tap into such a huge market.” “It has lots of investment opportunities that other regional companies can harness for the good of the people of East Africa and beyond.” Stick Luka, a Congolese entrepreneur who lives and works in the eastern DR Congo city of Bukavu, said his country’s likely membership is “a good initiative and its happening should be an opportunity for all populations.” Among the advantages for the DR Congo, Luka noted, are several administrative facilities and the reduction of charges for the commercial and economic activities of Congolese citizens as well as the facilitation of their mobility in regional countries. The DR Congo should also benefit from the reduction in customs tariffs for goods received in the ports of Mombasa, Kenya and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania that will have a positive impact on DR Congo’s import and export, Luka said. He added: “The first challenge for regional integration within the EAC is to facilitate the lives of people through their security as well as through the free movement of people, goods and services. It should also be noted that, on the other hand, we are losing part of our economic sovereignty, that is, Rwandan, Ugandan, Kenyan products, and others, will have customs facilities and dominate the local market because the absence of production units and road infrastructure which does not allow the DRC to be competitive to other member of the EAC.” Luka said his country “is lagging behind and, as a result, is in a weak position compared to other EAC countries.” The four stages for DR Congo admission The procedure for admission of the DR Congo, or any other new member, entailed four stages. First was a verification exercise; then there were negotiations with the country on its admission to the EAC directed by Summit. Mid last year, a verification team was deployed in the country. It submitted its report to the Council of Ministers in December 2021. What follows now will be eventual official admission; and the ultimate deposition of the instrument of acceptance of the terms of admission by the country within six months of its admission. Earlier, Mathuki noted that DR Congo’s intention to join the Community was not by default since it shares borders with five partner states – Tanzania, Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda and South Sudan. The role of the negotiations with the DR Congo was to establish its readiness to comply with the set six criteria as stipulated under the EAC Treaty and the bloc’s procedure for admission. The six criteria include: acceptance of the Community as set out in the Treaty; adherence to universally acceptable principles of good governance, democracy, the rule of law, observance of human rights and social justice; potential contribution to the strengthening of integration within the region; geographical proximity to and inter-dependence between the foreign country and partner states; establishment and maintenance of a market driven economy; and social and economic policies being compatible with those of the bloc. The negotiations also took into account the country’s profile and established, among others, its level of compatibility with the EACs stages of development in trade liberalization and development; co-operation in investment and industrial development; coordination in monetary and financial matters; development of infrastructure and services; development of human resources; and the development of agriculture and natural resources.

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End in sight for DR Congo’s three-year quest to join EAC