Posted in Press Release
The Secretary General of the East African Community, Amb. Liberat Mfumukeko, has instituted stringent expenditure reforms in the East African Community Organs and Institutions with immediate effect.
Amb. Mfumukeko, who took over the mantle from Amb. Dr. Richard Sezibera as the Chief Executive of the regional organization on 26th April, 2016, noted that the EAC Organs and Institutions had been experiencing liquidity challenges as a result of delays in disbursement of contributions by both the Partner States and Development Partners.
Article 67 of the Treaty for the Establishment of the EAC says that the Secretary General shall be the Accounting Officer of the Community.
In a Financial Management Circular dated 18th May, 2016, aimed at addressing the financial crunch at the Community, Amb. Mfumukeko says the EAC management has introduced cost cutting measures and reforms on the key expenditure items to be implemented immediately in all the Organs and Institutions of the Community.
The Secretary General said the measures and reforms are a product of intense consultations he has had with Executive Staff, Heads of Institutions, Directors, Professional and General Staff of the Community over the past few weeks.
Some of the measures include the following:
Technical Meetings Involving Delegates from Partner States and EAC Staff
The duration of meetings shall be rationalised. Technical meetings shall be conducted for a period not exceeding Four (4) working days. The number of delegates from Partner States facilitated through the EAC Budget shall not exceed two (2) from each Partner State; for each meeting, correspondence shall be sent to Partner States indicating that delegates should be nominated from relevant sectors who can actively contribute to the success of the meetings and that they consult widely with relevant stakeholders in Partner States prior to coming to meetings.
In order to reduce conference costs:
(i) Where possible, the use of free of charge Government-owned facilities should be encouraged;
(ii) The Procurement Unit shall negotiate for corporate conference and accommodation rates in each Partner State.
The EAC delegations to technical meetings shall not be more than three (3) Members of Staff.
Preparation for and facilitation of Policy (Council and Sectoral Council) meetings held outside duty station:
(i) There shall be preparatory meetings involving all staff with agenda items at the Headquarters, to review background papers and brief the EAC representatives to the said meetings;
(ii) Participation in Policy meetings: Directors and Technical Officers shall facilitate the session of Senior Officials only, while Directors, Heads of Institutions and Executives, shall participate in the Coordination Committee (Permanent/Principal Secretaries session) and Ministers/Cabinet Secretary session. The team facilitating the rapporteur is required throughout the duration of the meeting.
For Meetings involving Partner States’ delegates and staff held out of station, but within a radius of less than 150km of two (2) hour's drive from the duty station, the travel days for the staff shall be the actual first and last days of the meeting.
Meeting involving EAC Staff only or with Consultants
Meetings involving staff members only or with consultants, shall be held at EAC premises using conference halls/meeting rooms within the duty station.
Where an assignment/activity/training/retreat require more concentration, justification shall be provided to support taking the staff members outside the duty station. This decision shall be taken by the Secretary General or the officers with sub-delegated authority of the accounting officer i.e. the Deputy Secretary General in charge of Finance and Administration, the Clerk of the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA), the Registrar of the East African Court of Justice (EACJ) and Heads of Institutions.
Enhancing Staff Presence at Duty Station
Members of staff will only be allowed to be away from their respective duty station(s) for not more than 50% of their time. Exceptions shall be considered on individual basis provided that the cumulative number of days for a particular month does not exceed 65% of the time. These ceilings exclude days for participation in EALA and EACJ sittings.
Travel Clearance by the respective Director and DSG, or equivalent authorities in other Organs and Institutions, prior to travelling, is mandatory.
Consultancy Expenses
Prior to budgeting procurement of consultancies, which are not implementing a particular Council directive, a request shall be submitted to Management and considered by a Multi-disciplinary Advisory Committee. This is to save expenditure on short-term studies, trainings, which can be undertaken or facilitated by the EAC Professional Staff.
Video Conferencing
At least 25% of EAC meetings shall use video conferencing facility. EAC shall invest in improving video-conference facility, both at Secretariat and Partner States level, to accommodate as many meetings as possible, at the same time.
Air Tickets
As meetings are well planned on the EAC Calendar of Activities, Meeting Forms indicating the budget line to be charged shall be issued one month in advance and tickets two weeks prior to the date of the meeting, to avoid high costs that may arise from late bookings.
All air tickets shall be booked and issued based on the most direct route.
Per Diem Rates Applicable under Development Partners' Support to EAC
The Partnership Fund MoU between EAC and Development Partners shall be amended to reflect the application of Travel Policy as contained in the PRAG (EU Per diem Rates), with effect from 1st July, 2016.
During the negotiation of financing agreements with Development Partners, EAC shall be flexible to apply Development Partners’ Travel Policies with a view to attracting more support. Thus there will be No Top Up claim by a staff when implementing an activity funded by Development Partners under these terms.
A Projects Coordination Unit will be established by 1st of July, 2016 to enhance effective communication and reporting to Partner States, EALA and Development Partners. This will also ensure that EAC has a one stop desk and repository for information on all projects. The unit will ensure joint planning and budgeting, timely and coordinated implementation, reporting and auditing of projects.
Dormant Projects Supported by Development Partners
The following shall apply in order to avoid EAC incurring recurrent costs on behalf of Development Partners:
a) The contract of Project Staff will be tied to the life of the specific project except where the project runs for more than five years, the contract of the staff shall be broken into five years and renewable once;
b) In the event a Development Partner withdraws support to a running project, the contracts of the staff under this project shall be terminated, and;
c) Where a project faces delayed disbursements for more than three (3) months without communication for the delay or commitment on further disbursement from the Development Partner, the contracts for staff under this project shall be terminated.
All Staff of EAC Organs and Institutions are under the obligation to enforce the implementation of these new measures.
Posted in Press Release
In a memorable occasion for the East African Legislative Assembly, founding First Ladies of the EAC late yesterday delivered motivating addresses at a Special Sitting held in Arusha.
Looking graceful yet resplendent, Kenya’s Mama Ngina Kenyatta and Uganda’s Mama Miria Obote brought back the good old memories of the first EAC and challenged EALA Members to ensure the future of integration is both guaranteed and realised. The United Republic of Tanzania’s Mama Maria Nyerere sent her apologies. Her family was however represented at the occasion of the Special Sitting by Hon. Makongoro Nyerere, who is an elected Member of EALA.
First to take the podium was Mama Miria Obote who was emphatic that the EAC must re-energise itself and strive to be a fully functioning integration bloc. The former First Lady called for prioritisation of economic investment projects including oil refineries, the Standard Gauge Railway, agricultural research, food security and climate change.
The founding First Lady called for creation of employment opportunities especially for the youth in the region.
“This can be achieved through joint or common East African Community investments such as the ongoing projects between Uganda and Tanzania for the proposed pipeline, Uganda, Rwanda, Tanzania and Kenya for the Standard Gauge Railway; Kenya, Ethiopia and the new South Sudan for the Lamu Port. The clear call should be an intensification of efforts across various fields to make our region more integrated”, H.E. Mama Obote said.
She further called for the region to move faster to have an integrated syllabus and curriculum to stabilise the labour market within the EAC.
“For instance, a majority of Ugandans have never learnt proper Swahili. We are now learning proper Swahili in schools and in the public engagement. This is the best way towards integration”, Mama Obote said.
Mama Miria Obote was full of praise for the EALA for recognising the contribution of the founding families.
“We are very grateful for EAC and EALA for recognising the contribution of our founding Fathers, Comrade Mwalimu Julius Nyerere, Mzee Jomo Kenyatta and Comrade Dr. Apolo Milton Obote and we are also thankful to the Almighty God for having kept us alive as former First Ladies of the Independent East African Community, Mama Miria Nyerere, Mama Ngina Kenyatta and I”, Mama Obote said.
She further appreciated the Governments of the United Republic of Tanzania, Kenya and their people who as the original Members of the East African Community, understood the social-political challenges of Uganda.
“They welcomed, sheltered and catered for our people as political refugees. This spirit of togetherness was extended to Rwanda, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo and the new South Sudan. Not only for receiving and hosting refugees but also for walking the extra mile and facilitating peace talks, for example”, H.E. Mama Obote said.
Mama Ngina Kenyatta informed the Sitting that EAC’s founding fathers had “walked and worked tirelessly” in anticipation of unity of the region.
“In 1967, all three of us were witness to the establishment of a Community that spoke to that shared sentiment. The East African Community was built on the understanding that our nations and our peoples were stronger together. I request you to keep the hope of the founding fathers alive and to ensure that unity in the region is achieved”, Mama Ngina said.
“It is a credit to your hard work and persistence—and the hard work and persistence of your respective Governments—that today, that Community is more vibrant and active than ever”, the former First Lady added.
The first lady informed the August House that the region was on the verge of realising the dream of integration. She challenged EALA and the current EAC to strive to ensure disunity and mistrust was removed in a bid to strengthen integration.
Hon Miria Obote was accompanied by her son, Hon. James Akena while H.E. Mama Ngina Kenyatta’s entourage consisted of her family members including Mrs Wambui, Kristina Pratt, Selina Renee Pratt, Members of the Parliament of Kenya, women leaders from Central Kenya and representatives of the Mount Kenya University.
Welcoming the founding First ladies of Independence, Speaker of EALA, Rt. Hon Daniel Fred Kidega, lauded them for their contribution to the integration process.
“We are happy that you still show leadership in your own rights and continue to be involved in numerous humanitarian causes throughout the EAC region much akin to your active and prolific years when you worked for political and social justice and advocated for a wide range of human rights issues”, the Speaker said.
“Today, we celebrate you. You are walking encyclopedias in your own rights and repositories of information, who despite ageing gracefully, still credit, follow developments of this great region, and are supportive of the EAC unto this day. Late last year for example, Mama Ngina Kenyatta met with the EALA Kenya Chapter in Gatundu, Kenya, while in August 2014, a group of EALA Women Members paid a courtesy call on Mama Maria Nyerere in Dar Es Salaam. Mama Obote on her part, is still involved in the political spheres in Uganda and continues to follow developments at the EAC closely from Uganda House in Kampala”, the Speaker added.
The Speaker remarked that the integration process was on course and that it was stronger.
“Indeed, in retrospect, the collapse of the Community in 1977 was a sad and catastrophic affair, a great loss in opportunities and setback for the region. But today, I stand here convinced that the steps we have taken as a Community since its re-establishment are fundamentally underpinned on the Treaty for the Establishment of the EAC and we are on course for full integration of the region”.
The Assembly at its Sitting 5th Meeting of the 4th Session on March 16th, 2016, passed a Resolution recognising the role you all continue to play in galvanising East Africa in the integration process and in the service of East Africans as “informal Institutional Memory”. The Resolution was moved by Hon. Mumbi Ngaru.