Tanzania to skip customs territory East African Community meeting

Tanzania to skip customs territory East African Community meeting


Updated Thursday, October 24th 2013 at 21:50 GMT +3

By PHILIP MWAKIO
East African Community’s (EAC) largest member state by landmass, Tanzania, continues to face isolation following revelations that it will not be party to the launch of a single customs territory.
Heads of state from Uganda, Kenya and Rwanda will be converging in Kigali on Monday, together with South Sudan, which is angling to join the EAC, expected to attend.
This is a move that will facilitate the movement of goods from the Mombasa port to East Africa’s interior.
This supply route is what is known as the Northern Corridor. The development is under a trilateral framework, which seeks to fast track different initiatives agreed upon under the auspices of the EAC.
Media reports in the Rwandan Daily and Rwanda Times, quoting Monique Mukaruliza, trilateral initiative national coordinator, said the third trilateral summit will be preceded by a ministerial meeting this weekend. The summit will also decide on the issue of South Sudan’s request to join the initiative.