EAC allocates 45pc of budget to mediation

Politics and policy

The East African Legislative Assembly during a recent sitting. It has approved a supplementary expenditure that gives priority to peace building. PHOTO | CYRIL NDEGEYA 

By GEORGE OMONDI, omondi@ke.nationmedia.com

In Summary

• The budget, drawn to cover the period to June, allocates 45 per cent of the Sh187 million spending plan to handling disputes that could arise out of heightening political activity in the region.

East African States have carved out a significant chunk of their integration budget to finance political mediation in a bid to tame risks associated with elections in 2015.

The East African Legislative Assembly (Eala) set the tone on Wednesday with approval of a supplementary expenditure that gives priority to peace building efforts.

The budget, drawn to cover the period to June, allocates 45 per cent of the Sh187 million spending plan to handling disputes that could arise out of heightening political activity in the region.

“The supplementary budget allocates $919,413 (Sh84.2 million) to undertake mediatory and confidence building activities prior to the upcoming May to June 2015 elections,” Eala said in a statement Thursday.

Within the EAC bloc, Tanzania is preparing for a referendum and national elections, which are seen as a critical test on the future of Chama Cha Manduzi, Africa’s oldest ruling party.

The political risks appears higher in Burundi, which recently emerged from 13 years of brutal civil war in 2006. The country’s President Pierre Nkurunziza, with tacit support of regional states, has controversially elected to run for a third term despite strong opposition from rights groups.

Similarly, neighbouring DRC, which has commercial ties with EAC states, is already rocked by political violence as President Joseph Kabila fights to change a law that could grant him a third term next year.

The EAC organs are apparently taking early steps to manage the political risks and forestall the kind of mass destruction witnessed after Kenya’s 2007 election.

Traders from Uganda and Rwanda have since lodged a legal suit seeking billions of shillings as compensation from Kenya over its failure to protect goods that were destroyed while on transit.

For pending elections, the EAC Council of Ministers said it will channel financial support from the European Union to the regional Early Response Mechanism (ERM), which forms part of the African Peace Facility being implemented in the Comesa/EAC region.

“It is part of on-going efforts by the regional economic communities to consolidate democracy and promote peaceful elections in the region,” Abdalla Sadaala-Abdalla, Council of Ministers co-chair, said when he presented the 2014/2015 Supplementary Budget to the House.

The importance accorded to management of political risk in the supplementary budget overshadowed the food security drive, which received only Sh27 million, and trade facilitation (development of EAC-African Growth and Opportunity Act) that got Sh15.6 million.

Similarly, the EAC ministers have allocated only Sh13.7 million for the fight against HIV/Aids, Sh4.5 million for the implementation of the new generation e-passport and Sh4.6 million for the formulation of the EAC Vision for 2050.

The Institute for Security Studies (ISS), however, wants the African Union to speak out strongly against attempts by its members who manipulate constitutions to extend their mandates.

Stephanie Wolters, ISS head of Conflict Prevention and Risk Analysis division, said the AU should provide support to civil society groups opposing efforts by leaders to prolong their mandates.