Tanzania March 2006 |
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| Process starts for free movement in East Africa, (, 2006-03-24):-The first meeting of the East African Community High Level Task Force (HLTF) on the negotiations of the Draft Protocol on the Free Movement of Persons, Labor, Services, Right of Establishment and Residence ended in Arusha last weekend with Delegates unanimously agreeing to commence the negotiations on the Protocol. At the same time, the HLTF recommended that an enabling decision by the EAC Council of Ministers be in place so as to simultaneously commence negotiations on a Common Market Protocol in order to avoid duplication of efforts and resources involved in negotiating two separate Protocols. The EAC Council of Ministers will also be requested to establish a Multi-Sectoral Coordination Committee to guide the negotiations process of the Free Movement of Person Protocol. Mr. Uledi A. Mussa, Senior Economist, Ministry of East African Cooperation, was the leader of the Delegates from Tanzania; Mr. Barrack R. Ndegwa, Director, EAC, Ministry of East African and Regional Cooperation, lead the Delegates from the Kenya; while Dr. Ogaram David, Commissioner for Labour, Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development lead the Delegation from Uganda. Also in attendance were delegates from the East African Business Council (EABC), the Association of the Professional Societies of East Africa (APSEA), and the East African Trade Union Council (EATUC). Opening the meeting EAC Deputy Secretary General, Finance and Administration, Mr. Ahamada R. Ngemera noted that the commencement of the EAC Customs Union operations in January 2005 allowed for the free movement of goods within the region.The next stage of the EAC integration process, he said, was the establishment of a Common Market. Free Movement of Persons, Labour, Services, and the Right of Establishment and Residence is an important aspect of the Common Market. Thus, he said, the work of the HLTF was quite critical and therefore called upon the delegates to deliberate the agenda items with an open mind and in the spirit of the East African Cooperation. He emphasized that this would ensure that the work of the HLTF compliment the efforts towards laying a strong foundation for the EAC Common Market and the sustainable implementation of the Customs Union. "The Customs Union Protocol took us four years to negotiate, it was a pioneer project for us and it was a learning ground and a confidence building exercise. Let us then aim at greater efficiency this time and use a shorter time frame to negotiate this Protocol", said the Deputy Secretary General. The High Level Task Force recommended the negotiations on the Protocol be completed within a period of two years and its membership be expanded to include Partner States' Ministries of Lands, Local Governments, Trade and other sectors with relevance to the issues to be negotiated. The recommendations of the High Level Task Force are to be presented to the EAC Council of Ministers for consideration. | |
South African Migration Project (SAMP) - Queen's University - http://www.queensu.ca/samp |