Methodological Research Project on Deepening Political Integration of the EAC - Meeting Report

 The Methodological Workshop under the theme of Deepening Political Integration of the EAC was held in Nairobi, Kenya on 3rd June 2003. The DPMF and the African Centre for Economic Growth (ACEG) hosted the Workshop jointly. The 12 participants present at the meeting represented the academia, policy makers and civil society organizations.

The opening remarks of the session were made by Dr. Abdalla Bujra, Executive Director of DPMF, who briefed participants about the purpose of the meeting which was to present and discuss the proposals prepared by three researchers from Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda who will be undertaking a research project on deepening political integration of the East African Community (EAC). The meeting was intended to discuss how the research should be carried out. 

The research projects seek to look at various forces operating in the EAC that are likely to support or push the political integration process as well as those constraining the integration process. The DPMF felt the importance of carrying out serious studies to look at these issues. It was noted by Dr. Bujra that the ACEG has undertaken research on the customs union of the EAC but stressed that very few studies have been carried out on the political and social aspect of the integration process. Integration has been based largely on economic rather than political considerations. DPMF is now trying to push the debate from economic integration to political integration. 

Under democratic dispensation the relationship between civil societies in these countries could be a major force of strengthening CSO networks, which in turn could be a force for issues of human rights, good governance at the Sub-regional level. This essentially is a process of deepening political integration of the EAC. DPMF is thus focusing on this process at the EAC level. It is hoped that these studies will link people within the regions. 

On 6th December 2003, there will be a bigger meeting to discuss the output of the research projects. 

What is needed at present is to look at issues of regional integration and concentrate most on the critical areas that require the most attention. For instance; 

  1. There has been long standing debate on regional integration. The UNECA looks at this issue from an economic perspective whereas the AU looks at it from a political perspective; therefore, there is a need to look at the debate of the AU/ECA on regional integration.
  1. There are serious problems regarding the theoretical framework on the situation in Africa. Basic interrogation concerning fundamental issues facing African integration has not yet developed.
  1. There is a further need to link national factors such as the state to local situations.
  1. There is an urgent need to give more emphasis on the role of Civil Society Organizations in regional integration.

Kenyan Proposal 

The Kenyan proposal presented by Dr. Katumanga, looks at how the process of integration can be pushed. What kinds of institutional frameworks are needed looking at these issues through: a) Foreign policy and b) Security. 

The key issues to be addressed in this project are: 

1.      State security from a regional perspective;

2.      The role of other forces e.g. private sector, CSO’s, political class/elite;

3.      Analyze processes of lateral pressure;

4.      Identifying an institutional process that can enhance lateral pressure;

5.      Cross-border communities in conflict to be integrated as the first area to come under direct control of the EAC Secretariat in Arusha. 

The main idea of the project is to start the integration at the local level – the border communities between Kenya and Uganda for example and later apply the model on other border communities before moving to the countries as a whole. For East Africa to maximize their capacity on their own without being dependent on others, then it is mandatory that they work together. Organizations such as civil society groups bring about a sense of security from the ground. Social forces must share the common threat of security.

 

Discussion 

The discussion that followed the presentation indicated: 

·        Caution in the use of terminologies;

·        The paper must be clear in terms of what is being addressed. What are the core issues? Is the paper addressing security or political integration?

·        What is the scope of the study? How far back will the study go?

·        The research should produce a model for integration at local level. The project should come up with recommendations suitable for member states;

·        There are many ideologies of security but it needs to be made clear which security ideology is being referred to e.g. regimes security, citizens security etc.

·        Further explanation is required regarding how cross-border communities in continuous conflict can be re-organized to become less war-like oriented;

·        How do you go about re-orienting communities to live peacefully with each other in other words how do you transform communities?

·        Concepts such as communities being marginalized and communities being politicized need to be addressed in the paper as these issues are broader than they are portrayed in the proposal;

·        Further elaboration is needed concerning the creation of positive security in border areas;

·        The basic cause of insecurity needs to be revisited more in detail, and forces that are a danger to regional security need to be identified;

·        A clear distinction needs to be made between people who choose to exit from the state and those marginalized and pushed out of the state;

·        To what extent do trans-border conflicts impact on the relations between states?

·        There needs to be more clarity when talking about CSO’s. It is also important to look at the role of CSO’s in pressurizing political elites;

·        The idea is very interesting and the final product must demonstrate the reason for focusing on border communities, which are in constant conflict.

 

Ugandan Proposal

 

In Dr. Kayunga’s presentation on Uganda, he noted that Uganda poses challenges to the newly created EAC in the following ways: 

1.      Forces of separatism and regionalism are very strong, this is manifested in the demand for regional autonomy;

2.      Uganda has different political arrangements; it has been pursuing a “movement” system of governance and not party pluralism;

3.      Uganda has had a big share of instability posing a great challenge to regional stability which the other countries of EAC may not be willing to bear the costs;

4.      Uganda has exported more refugees than other EAC countries creating an atmosphere of suspicion. 

Despite these challenges, Uganda provides opportunities. Co-operation between Kenya and Tanzania becomes part and parcel of Uganda’s existence due to the fact that Uganda is landlocked. Uganda has the potential of being a food basket if its resources are harnessed. 

The issues presented in the proposal to be addressed in the project are the following: 

1.      Civil Society networks facilitating EA integration;

2.      The role of the state and the attitudes of the political elites;

3.      Economic co-operation within East African specifically the flow of trade between the three countries and an evaluation of institutional barriers aimed at facilitating trade and the movement of people;

4.      External factors involved e.g. donors attitudes, globalization;

5.      Current attitudes and practices of people towards the East African federation;

6.      Cultural exchanges-people having common identity and values, migration patterns, popular cultural practices, educational exchanges.

 Discussion 

The following issues were discussed relating to the presentation: 

·        There needs to be consistency in use of terminology. The text talks of regional integration and the title talks of an African federation;

·        The text talks of establishing an EAC rather than the next step for the EAC. The project should focus on experiences, which could add value to the integration process. It should also focus on conflict whose character has changed significantly since the introduction of the EAC. The study should identify new threats from the past 10 years and address these issues;

·        The research issues should be narrowed down and more focused considering time constraint;

·        What has been avoided is talking about Uganda as an unstable country (conflicts with LRA, Rwanda, DRC, Karmajong, Sudan, Baganda) these are important issues to look at and ask if Uganda can manage all these conflicts;

·        What is the role of civil society and the role of decentralization in providing a way out of the conflict situation?

 

Tanzanian Proposal 

The Tanzanian proposal presented by Dr Killian identified what Tanzania has to offer in order to strengthen the process of political integration? The following were sited as Tanzania’s contribution towards regional integration. 

1.      Tanzania has a strong sense of national unity and a unique character moving towards political integration;

2.      There exists a high level of political consciousness between Tanzanians;

3.      Tanzania has maintained a track record of political will dating back to Nyerere’s strong support of Pan-Africanism;

4.      Tanzania’s continued commitment towards political integration. 

The limitations Tanzania faces are as follows: 

1.      Weak civil society– this has a historical explanation as CSO’s were banned or suppressed to support ruling parties. The Tanzanian civil society has yet to assert itself, as it is not fully capable yet to do so.

2.      Tanzania’s private sector is relatively weaker than other partner states. Leaders are more concerned with immediate gains. If that is non-existent then their commitment is reduced. 

The main question pertaining to the project is what are the forces in Tanzania likely to facilitate the integration process? 

Discussion 

·        Anecdotal concerns go beyond stereotyping to something we may characterize as xenophobia; therefore, what should be the type of reforms in thinking that we need to come up with in order to empower institutions?

·         Is this a private sector pushed or state pushed process?

·        In regards to the private sector, it was noted that we must be careful not to create monopolies again. In looking at these aspects we should also consider smaller aspects that can exploit the process;

·        The project must look at donor dependence especially for Uganda