Dr Musonda believed in EA trade

Dr Musonda speaks in a past event. She was a strong proponent of regional trade. PHOTO| ZEPHANIA UBWANI 

By Zephania Ubwani, The Citizen

In Summary

Silence and disbelief ruled at the Community headquarters for hours that day as workers tried to come to terms with the loss of a staff member.

Arusha. It was a great shock for staff members of the East African Community (EAC) when workers returning from lunch break on October 15, learnt about the untimely death of their colleague Dr Flora Mndeme Musonda, who until her demise was the director of Trade for the regional organisation.

Silence and disbelief ruled at the Community headquarters for hours that day as workers tried to come to terms with the loss of a staff member.

She has been with the Secretariat for slightly over eight years now, mostly involved in trade negotiations both intra-regional and between the bloc and the outside world.

Dr Musonda, who was in her 50s, was an accomplished economist. But as a senior official of the regional organisation at times she could not hide her feelings when she felt they should be made public for the interest of the society or the East Africans in general.

For instance, in August 2005, only months after joining the Community, she confronted President Benjamin Mkapa to explain how the economic bloc would fare with Tanzania being a member of the Southern Africa Development Community (Sadc) while Kenya and Uganda, then the only two other members of EAC belonged to Comesa.

President Mkapa had visited the EAC headquarters to bid them farewell as he was to step down later that year.

The late Musonda had expressed her fears or reservations on members of the EAC belonging to different trading blocs.

She could not get an explicit answer from the retiring leader as Mr Mkapa insisted that such issues had to be tackled by sitting or future presidents.

Last week workers of the EAC Secretariat, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the late director could best be remembered for her role during many trade negotiations, including the marathon talks which preceded the signing of the EAC Common Market Protocol in November 2009.

The Protocol was later ratified by all five member countries and came into force in July 2010.

“She was also very much involved in the EAC-SADC-Comesa”, added the official who works with the Infrastructure Unit at EAC headquarters.

A statement issued by the directorate of Corporate Affairs and Public Information later said Dr Musonda passed away at around noon on the fateful day at St. Thomas Hospital in the heart of Arusha, where she had gone for a medical checkup.