EAC INTEGRATION

Understanding the Opportunities and Challenges arising from EAC Integration for Youth

Juste Picasso Nduwayo
Journalist in internship at RTNB

All over the world, countries go together to form a community in order to share the same travel to development. Five countries in Africa, that is, Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda which are in Great Lakes region have formed East African Community.

Youth constitute about 60 per cent (70 million people) of the entire population of the East African Community. Integration starts with people’s attitudes and to realize a complete integration process, first, there is need to influence youth’s ways of thinking through social, economic, and political integration in order to find ways of facing challenges and exploiting opportunities. Knowing the problems that hamper the East African youth progress and possibilities and occasions of moving forward would be the only way to a sustainable development in East African Community. This is what this essay is about.

To start with, there are many opportunities arising from East African Community for youth in East Africa.

Firstly, Common market creates space for the youth in East Africa with job opportunities. Creating a common market means removing obstacles to the free movement of both labor and capital. So, the youth are the first people to profit from job opportunities because they are active. Free movement of labor is perceived as highly desirable in all countries of East African community and youth occupies a big number in the Community to gains from the common market.

Secondly, Exchange of experience between youth help them to up lift one another. By sharing skills and knowledge, youth learn many things from their fellow citizens; an occasion that has helped much many young people to create their own jobs through associations regardless their nationalities, ethnic groups, religions, ideas to name few. For example, EAC University students’ debate on regional Integration promotes a dialogue between youth to overcome challenges that our community is facing and to discover in unison the opportunities that the community has.

Thirdly, youth profits much from inter university relations for all countries in East African Community. Inter university has brought my gains for young students of the community such as abolition of student visas for East Africans, Standardization of university fees for citizens of East Africans and implementation of student and lecturer exchange programs at university level. For instance, students from any country of the community are free to choose any faculty or University of the community without limits; this would increase the skills among the youth of community.

However, although there are many opportunities, some challenges cannot lack in a new community which has a big number of poor persons. The youth are the first persons to suffer today and in the year to come.  Here below there are challenges that hamper the progress of the youth in East Africa.

First of all, there is a lack of awareness about East African Community Works among young people. No one can ignore that only decision makers, leaders, journalists, EAC Members of Parliament, and some businessmen are aware of the works of East African Community. The rest of the other population, youth included, remains in the darkness of ignorance about EAC activities.

Second, lack of common culture for all countries in EAC is a hindrance for youth to really work for the community. Language barriers have been a big problem for youth to easily communicate with other young people. For example, English, which is a lingua franca of EAC members, can only be found in educational programs in Burundi. It is not taught to all citizens whereas it is the only tool of communication that would be used to work in unison with other people of the EAC.

Third, failure of implementation of some projects by incumbent leaders of EAC is a hindrance for youth to massively integrate in the community. Decision makers of the community have thought of good and strong projects to develop the EAC but most of those ones have remained in papers. Due to these projects which remains theoretical, youth has lost the energy to march in foot print of the community progress.

In addition, to overcome these challenges requires the contribution of all young people in EAC. Youth should create EAC clubs and Networks in the community so to empower youth with ideas about the EAC progress. Also to get involved in the issues that affect them like HIV, poverty, unemployment, corruption and to make all countries of EAC an English speaking environment. Leaders should leave theories in their projects and implement them also explain about EAC activities and multiply debates on EAC integration.

In conclusion, in East African Community there are many opportunities that need to be exploited and many challenges that hamper the progress of youth development and to understand them will improve the life of the youth in their future. As far as I am concerned, I share the same view with someone who said ’Tell me the youth you have I will tell you the people you will be’’. Which means, if we have young people who can face the challenges of these days and who are able to exploit the opportunities, make sure that in the years to come, we will have fathers, mothers, ministers, Doctors, experts, engineers, directors, decision makers to name a few who will be able to sustain the EAC and going forward in the development.

                                                                                  Juste Picasso NDUWAYO