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U
N I T E D N A T I O N S
Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)
Integrated Regional Information Network (IRIN)
BURUNDI - EAST AFRICA - RWANDA : Admission to East African Community
delayed
NAIROBI, 12 April (IRIN) - The admission of Burundi and Rwanda to
the East African Community (EAC - comprising Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda) has
been delayed, The New Vision Ugandan government-owned newspaper quoted Jikaya
Kikwete as announcing on behalf of the EAC Council of Ministers on Thursday.
"The council felt strongly that ultimately the Community may have to
include those two countries. However, the council was of the view that this
was not the appropriate moment for Rwanda and Burundi to be admitted,"
the council's report, which was later adopted by the presidents of the three
East African countries, said.
It said the community was still in a formative stage and it would not be
prudent to admit new members now, the paper said. The ministers said the
admission should be made after the protocol for the establishment of a customs
union had been finalised, signed and made operational. "At that time, the
application of Rwanda, Burundi and other foreign countries would be
considered," the report said.
Burundi and Rwanda applied for membership in 1999 and 1996 respectively. The
council also said that in the interest of the EAC, any admission of foreign
countries would be based on strict conformity with the criteria provided for
under the treaty. One of the conditions was that an applicant country had to
be democratic. "In view of all these considerations and decisions, the
council directed that the applications by Rwanda and Burundi will be kept
under active review and the applicants kept duly informed," the council's
report added.
