EAC Common Market has offered some advantages

Students from EAC countries benefit from the free movement of persons and goods. Today, they no longer pay visa fees to go to study inside EAC Partner States.-By Lorraine Josiane Manishatse

Jean Pierre Bacanamwo, Hilaire Ntakiyica and Boniface Ndayiragije(Left to Right) Two Directors in the Ministry in Charge of EAC Affairs and one Director in the Ministry of Public Work and Social Security.©Iwacu

In November 2009, Burundi and other EAC Partner States took an important step in the adoption of the Common Market Protocol which came into force 1st July 2010 after the ratification of five country members of EAC. The main objective of the common market is to expand and deepen cooperation between EAC Member States in economic and social domains. According to Jean Pierre Bacanamwo, Director of Department of Trade, Finance and Investment in the Ministry in Charge of East African Community Affairs in Burundi, the common market has offered the free movement of persons and goods which is the first step in the implementation of the common market. “In accordance with Article 7 of the treaty, EAC member states have agreed to allow people to circulate freely inside EAC countries. They have abolished visa fees to facilitate them to move from one country to the other. Now, a Burundian going to Nairobi, gets a visa freely whereas it cost 20$ before,” he praises. Bacanamwo indicates that since 2010, the Burundi Migration Police PAFE has already recorded more than 922 Burundian students who have benefited from the free visa to go to study in other EAC countries.
Moreover, the process of creating an EAC common identity card as a valid travel document is in process. The process is more advanced in Rwanda than in Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda and Burundi. “In Rwanda, they have already got a National Identity card which fulfils norms required by the community. But it will also be valid in all other EAC member States if they become able to read that biometric card,” he says. He also indicates that there is a project of creating a single passport in EAC countries. “Now, we are studying the design of that passport. All this, in order to facilitate EAC citizens to move freely as they want,” he concludes.

Right to Establishment and Residence in EAC countries

For Hilaire Ntakiyica, Director for Infrastructure, in the Ministry in Charge of East African Community Affairs, all citizens from EAC countries have right to reside, establish and invest in any EAC country. In accordance with Article 13 of the treaty related to the common market however, a peasant farmer can’t establish in any EAC country because according to him cultivating is not an economic activity. “People must know it, the common market facilitates economic activities and cultivating isn’t one,” points out Ntakiyica. Boniface Ndayiragije, Director of Employment in the Ministry of Public Work and Social Security indicates that thanks to the common market advantages, someone can now easily get the permission to work after 30 days whereas one would wait for more than three months some time ago.

Students from EAC countries praise advantages offered by the Common Market

Fred Patrick Shaka, a Burundian student in Uganda.©Iwacu

According to Carolyn Ntalel, a Kenyan studying at Uganda Martyrs University, what made her go to study in Uganda is the low cost of school fees. The EAC Common Market did something good to abolish visa fees. What is more, the student registration requirements are easy today.
“Basically, it’s like I am still in Kenya, I don’t have any hassle because I am from Kenya. There is no difference among students concerning fees or country of origin. We are all considered as EAC students,” gladly states Ntalel. The same view is shared by Washington Muhapa from Tanzania who is also a student in Uganda, he prefers to study in Uganda because he wants to socialize with other EAC countries’ students and share experience with them. Advantages offered by the Common Market have also influenced him. “As our country has been a member of EAC since a long time, I never pay anything for visa. It is a pity to see how our Congolese and Zambian friends suffer in Uganda because of visa fees, this is a big chance for us Tanzanians,” he states. For Shaka Fred Patrick, a Burundian also studying in Uganda, the EAC integration offers many opportunities for one to work in any EAC Member State. As the labor market in Burundi is hardly accessible today because of political and socio-economic reasons, they must prepare to go elsewhere they will take into account their skills and competence. Another reason which has pushed him to go to study in Uganda is that he wants to improve his English knowledge as it is the major tool of communication in EAC. Finally, he has also decided to go there for study because he wanted his parents to reduce their expenses as the visa fees have been abolished.