EAC Secretary General calls for Partner States to support innovative developments

Posted in Press Release

East African Community Secretariat, Arusha, Tanzania, 26 June, 2018: The East African Community (EAC) Secretary General, Amb Liberat Mfumukeko has called on the Partner States to support innovative developments from the private and public sectors that bring the vision of a fully integrated and developed EAC closer to reality​.
 
''I realized the urgency for East Africa to grasp the business opportunities offered by new technologies to create a competitive advantage for industries in our region.'' 
 
The Secretary General was speaking during the opening session of Google Project Loon Workshop  at the Ole Sereni Hotel in Nairobi,Kenya
 
He disclosed to the participants that the EAC had established the East African Science and Technology Commission; the East African Health Research Commission and the Inter-University Council of East Africa because it  believes that education, mainly sciences and technology, as well as research are the foundation of any competitive economy.​
 
Amb. Mfumukeko added that  the EAC’s 5th Development Strategy covering the period 2017 to 2022, underscores the centrality of technology and industrialisation in the overall development of the Community as the cornerstone for regional development .​
 
"It is an exciting time for EAC that the launch of the balloon anchored internet infrastructure by Loon targeting the under-served areas of the world makes its debut on the continent in the EAC Region'', added the Secretary General.
 
''I assure Loon that the choice of EAC will undoubtedly anchor the Project on a positive growth and expansion trajectory on the African Continent''
The EAC Secretary General reiterated  how critical the access to ICT in the EAC integration process underpinnings to unlock the growth and market potential for the region and contribute to equitable and sustainable development envisaged in the EAC’s Vision.
 
He appealed to the Partner States to embrace  Google Project  Loon and extend to it the support required to launch and operate in all the Partner States. "​I thank Loon for choosing EAC as the launch pad for this clearly transformational Project", added Amb Mfumukeko.

Meanwhile, the EAC Secretary General on behalf of the Secretariat and Ms Anna Prouse, Google Project Loon Coordinator signed a Letter of Intent  ​to deepen cooperation and collaborate in good faith on provision of access to internet for all East African citizens.

Earlier in a day the Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of Information, Communication and Technology, Hon. Joe Mucheru congratulated Google Project Loon for the ambitious project that is geared towards providing internet access to rural and remote areas in the region.
 
In  his speech, which was read by the Principal Secretary, Ministry of Information,Communication and Technology,​ Mr. Sammy Hemere, Hon. Mucheru belived that the region has the repsonsiblity to use broadband as a power force for change.
 
''I am convinced that all of us here, have the united purpose to facilitate increased  accessibility, affordability, availabilty, reliabilty and usage of broadband services throughout our region'', added the Cabinet Secretary.
 
The two-day workshop is aimed at  providing stakeholders in the East African Community with an overview of Project Loon and its benefits for the states in the region; share technical information on balloon operations including the safety of flights and landing; the operations compliance with international and national safety and security requirements and standards; and to seek engagement and support from the EAC States and stakeholders in providing necessary overflight and landing rights to Loon balloons for their operations in the region.
 
Notes to Editors
 
Nearly two-thirds of the world’s population do not have Internet access. There is no one single company or technology that is able to solve this issue alone as the barriers to access are many and varied: limited financial resources, lack of content relevancy, lack of language and digital literacy as well as limited or non-existent basic infrastructure.

Project Loon is a network of balloons 20km above the Earth’s surface, well above aircraft and weather events, aimed at addressing the connectivity challenge by bringing Internet coverage to rural and remote areas, areas affected by disaster and mobile Internet coverage black spots. Transmitting signal from way up in the sky, Loon balloons can provide a much larger coverage area than terrestrial LTE infrastructure and so are perfectly suited to covering larger areas with lower population density.

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For more information, please contact:

Mr Owora Richard Othieno
Head, Corporate Communications and Public Affairs Department
EAC Secretariat
Arusha, Tanzania
Tel: +255 784 835021
Email: OOthieno [at] eachq.org

About the East African Community Secretariat:

The East African Community (EAC) is a regional intergovernmental organisation of five Partner States, comprising Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda, with its headquarters in Arusha, Tanzania. 

The EAC Secretariat is ISO 9001:2008 Certified

EALA at SADC Parliamentary Forum Sitting in Luanda

Posted in Press Release

…calls for its transformation to regional Assembly

East African Legislative Assembly, Luanda, Angola: 26 June, 2018: EALA is rooting for its Southern African counterpart, the Southern African Development Community Parliamentary Forum (SADC-PF), to speedily transform itself in to a regional Parliament so that it may effectively address the needs of its constituents.

Delivering a goodwill message from the EALA Speaker at the 43^rd Plenary of the SADC-PF, which commenced yesterday morning in Luanda, Angola, EALA Member, Hon Fatuma Ibrahim Ali rooted for the SADC-PF transformation into a Legislative Assembly, saying it was good for the SADC region and for Africa.

“Evidently, Africa needs strong institutions at this point in time and in the future to steer her to the much-cherished unity and prosperity of a united continent. EALA would like to fully associate itself with the SADC-PF towards looking into all aspects relating to the establishment of a regional Parliament”, Hon Fatuma Ali said.

“We believe that together, we can transform Regional Economic Communities (RECs) into one United African bloc in the near future for the common good of all people of Africa. Our co-operation should therefore be seen as building blocks from which we can draw vital lessons”, the legislator added.

Hon Ali further hailed the recent signing of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) in Kigali, Rwanda, saying it would go the extra mile in boosting intra-African trade and in enhancing the region’s industrial content. “Essentially, the Continent must as a necessity, remove all Non-Tariff Barriers on goods and related to services, to smoothen the mega-regional trade agreement, promote development and spur industrialization”, Hon Fatuma said.

The 43^rd Plenary Session of SADC-PF, runs through from June 20^th until July 1^st, 2018 under the theme: Deepening SADC Economic Integration through Industrialisation – the Role of Parliament. In attendance at the Plenary is Hon Mathias Kasamba, EALA Member and Chair of the Agriculture, Tourism and Natural Resources Committee as well as Senior Public Relations Officer, Bobi Odiko.

Addressing the participants, the President of the Republic of Angola, H.E. João Manuel Goncalves Lourenço reiterated his country’s commitment to the ideals of regional integration in the Southern African region. President Lourenço termed good governance, pace, security and competitiveness as key goals and attributes the SADC region should and must pursue.   The President maintained the necessity of economic prosperity of the 14 Member State bloc and rallied on all countries to seek self-introspection. President Lourenco, himself a former Member of SADC-PF said his country had pioneered the establishment of SADC in 1992 and underscored the support of the Summit of Heads of State of SADC.

On his part, Hon Helio de Jesus Pina Sanches, the representative of the President of the Pan African Parliament (PAP), said the continent was looking forward to a time when there is total free movement of persons. Hon Sanches commended the efforts realized by SADC-PF so far as transforming itself in to a regional Parliament is concerned.

The SADC-PF is hoping to transform itself in to a regional Parliament with legislative powers as anticipated under Article 8 of its Constitution.   At the moment, SADC-PF is an Advisory caucus of Parliamentarians who are constituted from the 14 Member States.   EALA is currently the only regional Assembly in the African continent with legislative powers. The Assembly has to date enacted over 70 pieces of legislation, many of which are currently undergoing assent by the EAC Heads of State Summit.

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For more information, please contact:

Bobi Odiko
Senior Public Relations Officer
East African Legislative Assembly
Arusha, Tanzania
Tel: +255-27-2508240
Fax: +255-27-2503103
Cell: +255-787-870945, +254-733-718036
Email: BOdiko [at] eachq.org
Web: www.eala.org

About the East African Legislative Assembly:

The East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) is the Legislative Organ of the Community and has a cardinal function to further EAC objectives, through its Legislative, Representative and Oversight mandate. It was established under Article 9 of the Treaty for the Establishment of the East African Community.