East African Community Headquarters, Arusha, Tanzania, 5th September, 2022: The East African Community (EAC) Deputy Secretary General in charge of Planning and Infrastructure, Eng. Steven Mlote, has reaffirmed the commitment of the EAC Secretariat to infrastructure development aimed at boosting intra-regional trade and free movement of persons across the Community’s seven (7) Partner States.
Eng. Mlote assured a visiting delegation from the Parliament of the United Republic of Tanzania (URT) Parliamentary Committee responsible for Foreign Affairs, Defence and Security of the EAC’s readiness to implement various infrastructure projects coordinated jointly by the Secretariat and Partner States.
East African Community Headquarters, Arusha, Tanzania, 22nd July, 2022: The EAC Heads of State have today in Arusha, Tanzania officially launched the 42.4 km EAC Arusha Bypass that is part of the multinational Arusha-Holili/Taveta-Voi road that links Northern Tanzania to the Kenyan port city of Mombasa.
The Arusha bypass is the first phase of a project that was constructed to decongest traffic in Arusha and Moshi towns in addition to promoting intra-regional trade.
The programme will enhance policy and regulatory environment for competitive markets and improve infrastructure connectivity and access to ICT.
Lusaka, Thursday, May 12, 2022: Five Regional Economic Communities (RECs) are set to benefit from a new eight million euros project: Enhancement of Governance and Enabling Environment in the ICT sector (EGEE-ICT), funded by the European Union. The project was launched on Thursday 12 May, 2022 in Lusaka, Zambia.
The four-year programme covers 29 African countries from the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) as the lead, the East African Community (EAC), the Intergovernmental Authority for Development (IGAD), the Indian Ocean Commission (IOC) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC). It will support the review and/or development of various regional policy and regulatory framework in a harmonized manner that will contribute to enhancing competition and improved access to cost effective and secure ICT services.
East African Community Headquarters, Arusha, Tanzania, 08th March, 2022:The EAC Secretariat is among three institutions in Africa to be recognized by the African Union Commission (AUC) for excellence in project preparation especially feasibility studies and designs.
The EAC received the Program for Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA) Quality Label (PQL) Award during the 7th PIDA Week that was held in Nairobi, Kenya from 28th February to 2nd March, 2022.
East African Community Headquarters, Arusha, Tanzania, 28th February, 2022: EAC Secretary General Dr. Peter Mathuki is urging African leaders to urgently implement the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM) agreement, in order to lower the costs of air transport in Africa and in turn boost development.
Speaking in Nairobi, Kenya, at the 7th Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA) week, Dr. Mathuki stated that air cargo currently accounts for only 2% of the global air cargo adding that air transport remains out of reach for both passenger and cargo haulage due to high associated costs.
“These costs can be brought down if we have political commitment to implement the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM) agreement,” he noted.
East African Community Headquarters, Arusha, Tanzania, 30th June, 2021: The EAC Sectoral Council on Transport Communications and Meteorology (TCM) has directed the United Republic of Tanzania to adhere to the set date of 30th September, 2021 on the implementation of the EAC Roaming Framework.
The TCM which met in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania further directed the Republic of Burundi to expedite the implementation of the EAC Roaming Framework.
East African Community Headquarters, Arusha, Tanzania, 22nd June, 2021: The 17th Meeting of the East African Community Sectoral Council on Transport, Communication and Meteorology (TCM) is currently underway in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
The five-day meeting started with the Session of Senior Officials which runs from Monday, 21st to 23rd June, 2021 followed by the Sectoral Coordination Committee that brings together Permanent/Principal and Under Secretaries on Thursday, 24th June, 2021. The Sectoral Council bringing together the Ministers/Cabinet Secretaries will be held on Friday, 25th June, 2021.
East African Community, Arusha, Tanzania, 23rd January, 2021:The construction of the multinational Tanzania –Uganda Road Project of Masaka – Kyotera - Mutukula/ Mutukula – Kyaka and Bugene – Kasulo – Kumunazi is on the way after the conclusion of Feasibility Study and Detailed Engineering Design funded by the African Development Bank (AfDB) under the NEPAD-IPPF facility.
The designs, done by M/S LEA International Limited from Canada in a joint venture with LEA Associates Asia Pvt Ltd from India, covered 89.5 kilometers of the Masaka to Mutukula road section in Uganda; a 30 km section from Mutukula to Kyaka linking to a 133 km Tanzania section from Bugene to Kumunazi via Kasulo.
OFFICE OF THE CHAIRPRERSON OF THE TRIPARTITE TASK FORCE
PRESS STATEMENT
TRIPARTITE SECTORIAL MINISTERIAL COMMITTEE ON LEGAL AFFAIRS ENDORSES LEGAL INSTRUMENTS FOR TRIPARTITE TRANSPORT AND TRANSIT FACILITATION
“Cross border road transport laws, regulations, standards and systems harmonized from Cape to Cairo”.
Following the consideration and adoption of the COMESA-EAC-SADC Vehicle Load Management Agreement (VLMA), the COMESA-EAC-SADC Multilateral Cross-Border Road Transport Agreement (MCBRTA) and five Road Transport Model Laws and Principles by the 2nd Meeting of the Tripartite Sectorial Ministerial Committee of Infrastructure (TSMCI) that took place in Lusaka, Zambia in October, 2019, the Tripartite Sectorial Ministerial Committee on Legal Affairs (TSMCLA) met on 18th September 2020. The TSMCLA met to legally scrub the following Draft Tripartite Road Transport Legal Instruments:
COMESA-EAC-SADC Multilateral Cross Border Road Transport Agreement;
COMESA-EAC-SADC Vehicle Load Management Model Law;
COMESA-EAC-SADC Cross Border Road Transport Model Law;
COMESA-EAC-SADC Road Traffic Model Law;
Draft COMESA-EAC-SADC Road Traffic and Transport Transgressions Model Law; and
Draft COMESA-EAC-SADC Transport of Dangerous Goods by Road Model Law
The instruments will be presented for consideration for final approval by the Tripartite Ministerial Council that will then recommend the Vehicle Load Management Agreement and the Multilateral Cross-Border Road Transport Agreement for signature, by the Heads of State and Government. The meeting of the Tripartite Council of Ministers is expected to be held before the end of this year (2020).
The COMESA-EAC-SADC Vehicle Load Management Agreement sets out the harmonized regulations and standards and the methodology for calculating overload fees with the purpose to retrieve the additional cost to the infrastructure caused by overloading, as well as the permissible load limits with the view to protect the road pavement as well as to ensure road safety. The Draft Agreement also provides the basis for cooperation between the Member/ Partner States of the Tripartite Free Trade Area regarding vehicle load management, law enforcement, information sharing, as well as mechanisms for dispute resolution.
The COMESA-EAC-SADC Multilateral Cross Border Road Transport Agreement, provides for a Tripartite legal framework for harmonisation of road traffic and transport related aspects, including vehicle registration documents, transport operator registration, vehicle fitness testing, driver training and testing, as well as driving licence categories based on appropriate international standards, including United Nations Standards.
Further, the Draft COMESA-EAC-SADC Multilateral Cross Border Road Transport Agreement provides for a framework for enabling a comprehensive cross border road transportation management system, which is based on quality regulation as opposed to economic regulation. The transport management system is supported by an electronic Tripartite Transport Registers and Information Platform System (TRIPS), which enables the exchange of data between the Member/Partner States, from their own National Transport Information Systems (NTIS) that consist of a number of modules, amongst others a vehicle system, a driver system, an operator system and a transgression system.
The draft instruments were developed through the Tripartite Transport and Transit Facilitation Programme (TTTFP) of COMESA, EAC and SADC. The joint programme is funded by the European Union under the 11th European Development Fund.
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For more information, please contact:
Simon Peter Owaka Senior Public Relations Officer Corporate Communications and Public Affairs Department EAC Secretariat Arusha, Tanzania Tel: +255 768 552087 Email: sowaka [at] eachq.org
About the East African Community Secretariat:
The East African Community (EAC) is a regional intergovernmental organisation of six Partner States, comprising Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda, with its headquarters in Arusha, Tanzania.
East African Community Headquarters, Arusha, Tanzania, 19th June, 2020: The movement of trucks between the United Republic of Tanzania and the Republic of Uganda at the Mutukula border has resumed after the two countries reached a consensus on measures to implement while mitigating the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to Mr. William Mkenda, Customs Officer in Charge at Mtukula border (Tanzania), truck drivers will now have to undergo mandatory COVID-19 testing in line with East African Community guidelines to tackle trans-border spread of the disease while minimising disruptions to cross border trade.
OFFICE OF THE CHAIRPRERSON OF THE TRIPARTITE TASK FORCE