Somalia at an advanced stage to join EAC

GOOBJOOG NEWS | ARUSHA: Somalia has made critical steps towards towards becoming the eighth member of the East African Community bloc.

Addressing a press conference in Arusha, Tanzania Wednesday, EAC boss said Mogadishu had made it to the negotiations stage and expressed confidence that Somalia would be accepted into the bloc this year.

A series of meetings will be held in Nairobi and the Somalia accession is one of the top agendas.

“The EAC conducted a verification mission to assess the readiness of Somalia to join the bloc and the report was deliberated on and shared with all partner states. Negotiations for admitting it will begin on the 22nd of this month to the 5th of September,” Dr Mathuki said.

Somalia applied to join the Community back in 2012 and a verification mission was launched by EAC on January 25, 2023 to assess its readiness.

The verification team’s report was adopted by the EAC Heads of State in Bujumbura in June 6, 2023, giving way to the Council of ministers and the EAC Secretariat to commence the negotiations with Mogadishu.

Dr Abdusalam Omer, Somalia’s former Foreign Affairs minister and currently Presidential Special Envoy to East African Community told the EastAfrican that the negotiations will be addressing all the EAC pillars of integration, comparing and contrasting with the Somalia rules and laws.