Posted in Press Release
EAC Headquarters, Arusha, Tanzania, 21st November 2017:
Three East African Community Organs – the EAC Secretariat, East African Legislative Assembly and the East African Court of Justice – are set to join other international, regional and sub-regional organizations based in Arusha to participate in the inaugural Open Day for International Organizations scheduled to take place on Saturday, 25th November, 2017 in Arusha.
The Open Day will be held at the premises of the UN-Mechanism for International Criminal Tribunals (MICT or Mechanism) located in Lakilaki, Arusha.
The Open Day 2017 for International Organizations aims at increasing visibility and raising awareness on the mandates and functions of the respective organizations that make up the international community in Arusha. It is anticipated that the open day will also serve to improve the level of cooperation between the participating organizations and local Government authorities.
The event will further showcase the significance of the city of Arusha at both the regional and international levels.
Arusha is host to a number of key international, regional and sub-regional organizations that have, over the years, made it a prominent judicial, economic, political, tourism and cultural hub in the region.
Other Arusha-based organizations that will participate in the Open Day include: the MICT, the African Court for Human and Peoples’ Rights, the African Institute of International Law, the African Union Advisory Board on Corruption, the East, Central and Southern Africa Health Community, the Eastern and Southern African Management Institute (ESAMI), and the Pan African Postal Union.
The MICT has kindly offered to take the lead in the organization and hosting of the inaugural event, which will take place from 10:00 hours to 17:00 hours at the MICT premises at Lakilaki.
Senior Tanzanian government officials, Executives and Staff working in the participating organizations and their families, University students and members of the public are expected to attend the event.
The programme will start with welcoming remarks by the MICT President, Judge Theodor Meron, followed by remarks from the Heads of other international organizations’ and the guest of honour, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation of the United Republic of Tanzania, Hon. Dr. Augustine Mahiga, as well as the Regional Commissioner for Arusha and the Lord Mayor of the City of Arusha. The remarks will be followed by a variety of presentations through the course of the day and activities for all age groups.
Visitors will have the unique opportunity to visit the respective stands of the international organizations’ and learn more about the work of these organizations.
The programme for the day will also include guided tours of the UN-MICT courtroom where a moot court organized by the International Committee of the Red Cross will take place from 14:00 hrs to 17:00 hrs.
Other events planned include the screening of documentaries produced by the MICT External Relations Section and the Outreach Programme of the former International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda.
The EAC Organs will have an exhibition booth where they will display some of its documentaries and promotional materials. Additionally, there will be a Medical Camp and a children’s corner, with activities for young visitors.
Free Snacks and refreshments will be served. There will also be free transport to and from MICT premises at Lakilaki, Arusha. Branded buses (25-seaters) will move around the city with three (3) major routes, namely:
- Njiro via Kijenge, Impala, Regional Commissioner’s office (garden), Naaz, friends’ corner, Kilombero market, Mbauda, to MICT;
- Sakina, Majengo, Mbauda to MICT, and;
- Kimandolu, Phillips, Sanawari, EAC close, Regional Commissioner’s office (garden), friends’ corner, Kilombero market, Mbauda, to MICT.
The Buses will be leaving the starting points and the final destination after every 30 minutes. The trips will be monitored by the members of the organizing committee and the ushers who will be placed at every pick-up point in branded T-shirts to help people identify the buses.
Posted in Press Release
East African Community Headquarters, Arusha, Tanzania, November 21st, 2017:
A two-day regional workshop on the establishment of Trade Information Portals (TIPs) organised by the EAC Secretariat in collaboration with the TradeMark East Africa (TMEA) and the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) is currently underway at Crowne Plaza hotel in Nairobi, Kenya.
Themed “Harnessing transparent trade information for effective trade facilitation in the East African Community,” which will run from 21st to 22nd November, 2017, the objective of the workshop is to assess the progress made in terms of the implementation of TIPs, and to identify how TIPs can best support and help monitor the implementation of national and regional trade facilitation agendas.
The workshop, among other things, specifically seeks to provide a forum for member states to share current status, challenges and achievements on the implementation of TIPs. The workshop will further formulate a regional Trade Facilitation Index and measurable targets for the online publication and simplification of trade procedures.
Also on the agenda of the Workshop will be the public launch of the Kenya Trade Information Portal hosted by the Kenya Trade Network Agency (KenTrade) which is scheduled for the morning of Wednesday, 22nd November, 2017.
Participants at the workshop are drawn from each EAC Partner State’s National Trade Facilitation Committee, Single Window Project Coordinator/Customs Officer and the TIPs Project Coordinators.
Note for Editors:
The World Trade Organization (WTO) Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA), adopted by the WTO General Council on 27th November, 2014 came into force on 22nd February, 2017. The TFA aims to create a more efficient trade environment by targeting administrative barriers to trade – unnecessary border inspections, excessive document and data requirements, manual processes, lack of coordination among border authorities and complex and inefficient rules and procedures.
The EAC Secretariat has partnered with UNCTAD to assist, with the financial support of TMEA, EAC Member States efforts to comply with, and benefit from, the provisions of the TFA through a Trade Facilitation Programme. One of the Programme’s key objectives is to increase the transparency of trade procedures by supporting the establishment of national Trade Information Portals (TIP). TIPs are currently being installed in Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda while the TIP will be implemented on a larger scale at a later stage in Burundi and South Sudan.
Once they are fully operational under the supervision of the National Trade Facilitation Committee (NTFC), TIPs are expected to provide trade operators with all the necessary regulatory and practical information on import, export and transit procedures, and governments with a powerful tool to simplify procedures and to support improved national trade facilitation policies.
-ENDS-
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 2008:9001 Certified
