EAC heads of state to meet over health, infrastructure and AGOA
East African Community Heads of State are expected to convene in Uganda’s capital Kampala next week to discuss a number of regional matters, including infrastructure and health sector growth.
Olivier Nduhungirehe, the State Minister in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Cooperation and East African Community, confirmed to The New Times on the agenda includes a two-day Joint EAC Heads of State Retreat on Infrastructure and Health Financing and Development.
The meeting will be held between February 21 and 22 and will be followed a day later by the 19th Ordinary Summit of the EAC Heads of State, which will also be held in Kampala.
“We are going to examine the progress of EAC agenda; looking into a number of issues facing the regional bloc, ranging from EAC financing to infrastructure development,” Nduhungirehe said yesterday.
EAC Secretary General Liberat Mfumukeko said in a statement that preparations are in “high gear” for the joint Heads of State retreat themed “Deepening and widening regional integration through Infrastructure and Health Sector Development in the EAC Partner States’’
Mfumukeko, who was speaking at a news conference held at the EAC Headquarters in Arusha, Tanzania, to update the media on the upcoming Joint EAC Heads of State Retreat and 19th Ordinary Summit, said that the former is aimed at accelerating the attainment of the objectives of the EAC Development Strategy, African Union Agenda 2063, and the Sustainable Development Goals in the infrastructure and health sectors in the EAC.
He said the joint retreat is expected to harness political support for regional flagship projects, funding commitments, and public-private partnership arrangements.
Mfumukeko said that the EAC had identified infrastructure development and health as sectors in which it would have to invest massive resources to spur economic growth and prosperity in East Africa.
“Let me assure you that EAC investment in infrastructure projects and health development continues to receive the utmost political attention by none other than EAC Heads of State,’’ Mfumukeko said in the statement.
He said the retreat would also be preceded by separate infrastructure and health sector investors’ and donors’ round-tables on 21st February 2018.
He added that the 4th Joint Retreat Programme will include an International Infrastructure and Health Sector Exhibition that will run from 21st to 22nd February, 2018.
The exhibition will provide a platform for players in the Infrastructure and Health sectors to showcase new products and services as well as exhibit latest advances in research and innovation.
Nduhungirehe also confirmed to The New Times that the Presidents will deliberate on the US economic policy on Africa, the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA).
In 2015, the EAC Heads of State adopted a three-year gradual process to phase out the importation of second-hand clothes and footwear to promote the textile, apparel and leather industries in the region.
US is currently reviewing Rwanda, Uganda and Tanzania’s eligibility to AGOA after the three EAC states remained firm on their pronouncement to phase out second-hand clothing to facilitate the growth of domestic factories even as the US asked the block to remove the limit on used clothing from the West.
Read related news articles
Kenya President Ruto joins US-Kenya business roadshow in San Francisco
Kenya's President William Ruto will address leading US technology companies and investors on Friday at the US-Kenya Business Roadshow in San Francisco organised by the American government’s Prosper Africa initiative. The roadshow - also co-organised by the US Embassy in Nairobi - highlights the business and investment potential in Kenya’s booming tech sector, a statement from the US Embassy in Kenya said. The event is part of a...
15 September 2023
AGOA boosts Kenya's textile exports to US, sector sees 7.2% growth
The African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) has benefitted Kenya’s textile and apparel sector, leading to monthly exports to the tune of Sh4.5 billion, or Sh150 million per day, last year, according to a study by London-based Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA). The programme has had a positive impact on the country’s export-processing zones (EPZs), especially in the textile and garment sector. Kenya is the second-largest exporter of...
08 August 2023
'US-EAC trade pact comes into life amid disharmony'
The Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (Tifa) between the US and the East African Community has begun taking shape, with a section of the bloc’s members keen on it and others still biding their time. This week, US officials were in Nairobi to conduct part of the negotiations on the US-Kenya Strategic Trade and Investment Partnership and to meet Trade ministers from the region. On July 18, Trade ministers from Tanzania, Uganda,...
23 July 2023
Kenya's president meets US delegates on trade and investments
Kenyan President William Ruto has today held talks with US Trade Representative, Ambassador Katherine Tai. The discussions were based on US trade policy. Ruto said that the country is ready to strengthen the already existing relations between the two nations. "We will stretch our ties beyond the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) in the wake of advanced technology and climate change, for the full exploitation of our trade potential,"...
19 July 2023
US trade rep in Nairobi as Kenya's solo deals worry the EAC block [incl. Readouts]
The US trade representative is in Nairobi to co-lead a meeting that seeks Kenya's partnership in a fresh trade deal. The Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA Council) is pursuing various agreements even as regional peers express concern over Kenya's solo approach. Yesterday, Trade Representative, Katherine Tai met patron circle members of the American Chamber of Commerce-Kenya (AmCham Kenya) ahead of today's...
17 July 2023
US President Biden calls for repeal of Uganda’s anti-gay law, threatens sanctions
President Biden called for the immediate repeal of Uganda’s new Anti-Homosexuality Act [ download statement alongside] and warned of possible sanctions in a statement Monday, as his administration evaluates “the implications of this law on all aspects of U.S. engagement with Uganda.” “This shameful Act is the latest development in an alarming trend of human rights abuses and corruption in Uganda. The dangers...
30 May 2023
US boosts Kenya apparel industry with $55m in new trade deals
The US is giving Kenya $55 million for expansion of export processing zones in a move that will boost Nairobi’s apparel exports. US initiative Prosper Africa and the US Embassy announced the funding at the launch of the US-Kenya Business Roadshow held on April 25 in New York. The announcement was part of the commitments made by President Joe Biden at the US-Africa Leaders’ Summit last year. The funds will be channelled under USAid and...
29 April 2023
Why Africa, why Kenya? Remarks by US Ambassador to Kenya
Thank you, Scott, for the kind introduction. It is a pleasure to partner with the Prosper Africa initiative to drive investment in Kenya and countries across the African continent. I am happy to kick off our U.S.-Kenya Business Roadshow with all of you today, and to announce that we will be partnering with Prosper Africa throughout the year to engage businesses and investors in cities across the United States. Our next stops include San...
26 April 2023
Kenya-USA: Joint Statement on the third US-Kenya bilateral strategic dialogue [incl. VIDEO]
The text of the following statement was released by the Governments of the United States of America and the Kenya on the occasion of U.S.-Kenya Bilateral Strategic Dialogue in Washington, D.C. on April 24, 2023. Begin Text: The Governments of the United States of America and the Republic of Kenya held the third iteration of the U.S.-Kenya Bilateral Strategic Dialogue in Washington, D.C. on April 24, 2023. The U.S.-Kenya Strategic...
24 April 2023
Kenya: Manufacturers push for 15-year AGOA extension
Kenyan manufacturers have asked the Trade ministry to request Washington to extend the existing duty- and quota-free access to the expansive US market window for another 15 years as the two countries prepare for talks over a long-term bilateral trade deal. The Kenya Association of Manufacturers, the sector lobby, argues that uncertainty over the more than two decades-Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) deal, which expires in two years, is...
02 March 2023
Kenya and US complete first round of trade talks
Kenya and the United States have concluded the first round of Strategic Trade and Investment Partnership (STIP) that will form a basis for future bilateral engagements. The Kenyan delegation, led by Trade Principal Secretary Alfred K’Ombudo, hope that the five-day talks on the free trade agreement will bear fruits. The government has been scouting for areas of collaboration that will increase foreign direct investment, promote sustainable...
13 February 2023
