Africa: The Democratic Republic of Congo has officially joined the East African Community as the seventh member of the block.
The ceremony of the seventh member of the block was held in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, and President Felix Tshisekedi signed the Treaty of Accession of the EAC on behalf of his country in order to cement their Admission to East African Community.
According to Tshisekedi, “Our admission to EAC will not only be helpful for the country’s economy, but it will also strengthen the peace and security within DRC and the region.”
The chairman of the East African Community, who is also Kenyan President, Uhuru Kenyatta, explained the official admission of DRC as a significant milestone.
As per Kenyatta, “Inclusion of DRC into the community will put EAC in a better position in order to combine or collaborate the resources so that they can develop the much-needed infrastructure, especially the main transit corridors running from East to West.”
Furthermore, he added that the admission of DRC into the EAC will open the door to opportunities for deeper integration of the community.
President Museveni said the East African Community is now a giant during the ceremony, and the bargaining power has greatly increased.
Moreover, he added that things are much easier now for us here due to brotherhood. Some same people were trying to unite us. I can go to Bunia in DRC and address a public meeting in my local language.
“Above all, we have what Europe doesn’t have, the common language of Kiswahili. In Europe, you saw their problem over which language to use, whether English, French or German. We don’t have that problem here.”
However, Museveni warned that the East African Community would only be successful if there were integration, primarily through marketing and strategic security.
New map
The new East African map with seven countries was disclosed at the function.
From today, the official East African map for use will have Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, DRC, and South Sudan.
