Kampala summit consents on creation of single market

Ali Balunywa,

The first tripartite summit which brought together leaders of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (Comesa), the East African Community (EAC), and the Southern African Development Community (Sadc) ended in Kampala yesterday. Its main resolution was the agreement on the expeditious establishment of a free trade bloc and a single customs union, stretching from South Africa to Egypt and from the Democratic Republic of Congo to Kenya.

Seven heads of state attended the Kampala meet. These included the host president; Yoweri Museveni, Mwai Kibaki of Kenya, Paul Kagame of Rwanda, Jakaya Kikwete of Tanzania, Kgalema Motlanthe of South Africa, Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe and Burundi Vice-President Gabriel Ntisezerana.

Also present were representatives from the African Development Bank and IGAD. The other countries sent senior ministers.
According to the New Vision newspaper, the Joint communiqué included;

1. The three blocs will have a single airspace within a year
2. Inter-regional broadband network for Internet. 3. Coordinate master plans for regional transport and energy within 12 months.
4. Increasing speed of integration and political unity
5. Speed up development of joint financial systems, capital markets and commodity exchanges.
6. Creation of a single army
7. Roadmap to free trade within 6 months
8. A legal framework to facilitate free movement for business people.
9. Harmonise positions on economic partnership agreements, including the World Trade Organisation.
10. Within one year Council of ministers to determine the time-frame for the free trade zone.
11. Call to help African developing and least developing countries to address the adverse impact of the financial crisis and the global economic melt down.


According to the Daily Monitor newspaper, the merger will lead to the creation of the largest free trade area in Africa, with a population of over 527 million people and a combined GDP of $624 billion. It added that the union is yet another step towards the attainment of the African Economic Community.

However, a number of obstacles stand in the way of forming a free trade area. The biggest of which is the multiple memberships of some countries to different regional groupings and fear of bigger economies like Egypt and South Africa.