CSOs demand EAC treaty reviewed to avoid border closures

By Ben Musanje

2^nd Feb 2022

Following the reopening of the Gatuna- Katuna border, three Civil Society Organizations in Uganda have come out to demand for the review of the East African Community –EAC Treaty to streamline the settlement of political, trade, and investment-related disputes among partner states.

NGO bodies include the East African Sub-regional Support Initiative for the Advancement of Women –EASSI, Southern and Eastern Africa Trade Information and Negotiations Institute –SEATINI- Uganda, and the Center for Food and Adequate Living Rights – CEFROHT want this to be done to effectively eliminate the Non-Tariff Barriers that are impending intra-regional trade.

On Monday, Rwandan President Paul Kagame reopened the border of Rwanda and Uganda at the Gatuna- Katuna border post after more than two and half years of closure due to claims that the Uganda government was conspiring with opponents to Kagame to destabilize that country.

Addressing a joint press conference in Kulambiro- Kampala today, the EASSI Executive Director Sheila Kawamara –Mishambi says that this scenario showed that the East African Court of Justice needs to be empowered to mediate between the partner states and discourage such trade blockages.

Jane Nalunga, the SEATINI Executive Director calls on both Uganda and Rwandan governments to provide startup capital for losses experienced by traders at the border points during the two years closure.