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Kenya:Customs Pact only next year |
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2004-9-1
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Three East African Heads of State (Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania) yesterday announced that all protocols and instruments needed for the creation of the common market would be signed in November.
In a joint communique issued after a day-long meeting at Nairobi''s Windsor Golf and Country Club, informed that Presidents Mwai Kibaki, Yoweri Museveni and Benjamin Mkapa were committed to speedy implementation of the protocols and instruments of the East African Community.
Long pending issues that have dogged the establishment of the Customs Union - a common market and Monetary Union in the medium term, were discussed threadbare.
On the customs law, competition policy and mechanisms for monitoring non-tariff barriers whose implementation has been deferred to January 2005; there was a clear cut difference of opinion among the three nations.
However, the Customs Union agreement is expected to pave way for the expected political federation between the three states.
A three-man committee to be set-up to fast-track the establishment of the protocol, whose report is to be submitted to the next regular EAC summit scheduled for November 30.
Major stumbling blocks towards the creation of a customs union for the region is expected to be ratified by the Presidents which include consensus on key areas, including a three-band tariff structure, harmonised commodity descriptions and coding rules, rules of origin and dispute settlement.
The arguments over the protocol''s implementation are centred on the region''s economic performance.
Tanzania, over the years has argued that it was less prepared for a Customs Union than Kenya, which has been the region''s economic powerhouse. |
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