Germany to support EA regional integration

MARC NKWAME in Arusha

THE Federal Republic of Germany has so far given the East African Community (EAC) over 213 million euro in grants for the Community’s regional integration initiatives.

Speaking during a one-day tour of Arusha, when he also paid a visit to the EAC Headquarters here, the Germany Foreign Affairs Minister, Dr Frank-Walter Steinmeier, said the money had been invested in education, health and infrastructure projects, among other sectors.

Dr Steinmeier said that his country will continue its support for the EAC which he said was on the right track in terms of economic and political integration. He said that there was no global blueprint for regional integration, adding that the EU was currently grappling with the refugee crisis brought about by the conflict in Syria and the Greek financial crisis.

“Integration is not a fair weather project. Germany would not be where it is today without economic cooperation with the rest of Europe. I can say that the 60 years of European cooperation has been a success story,” he said.

The Minister said it was up to the EAC Partner States to prioritize areas of cooperation amongst them. He said Germany was keen on increasing its cooperation with the EAC especially in areas such as vocational training, education and technology transfer.

Dr Steinmeier was addressing journalists at the EAC Secretariat in Arusha, after he held bilateral talks with the EAC Secretary General, Dr Richard Sezibera. The Minister urged the African Union and the EAC to expedite resolving the ongoing conflict in Burundi to prevent a spillover effect into neighboring states. He expressed hope that the views and concerns of all parties in the Burundian conflict including the Diaspora would be incorporated in the peace talks.

On economic growth in Africa and the EAC, Dr Steinmeier said it was disturbing that the perceived benefits from encouraging economic growth figures were not trickling down to the majority of the population especially those who live in the rural areas, in terms of employment opportunities and poverty reduction.

In his remarks, Dr Sezibera thanked Germany for its generous assistance which enabled the EAC to record significant success including the realization of the Customs Union, Common Market and commitments to support the attainment of the East African Monetary Union.

Dr Sezibera disclosed that intra-EAC trade had grown from 10 per cent a few years ago to more than 26 per cent at the moment.

The Secretary General said EAC was deeply interested in penetrating the German market which he described as large and vibrant, adding that the region also wanted to benefit from technology transfer from Europe’s largest economy.

On economic growth and efforts to address poverty, Dr Sezibera said the priority for the EAC in terms of employment was to rethink training in the region.

“Our focus is on vocational training and whether entrants into the job market have the right skills. We are also involving our agroprocessing industries on how to expand manufacturing to a level that can create more jobs,” said the Secretary General.