﻿Africa's East African federation. A super power in the making.
The Mbuti pygmy colony was one of many small bands of extended family groups of between 15
to 20 people. These colonies were nomadic, moving from one temporary camp to another, as dictated by
the seasons and hunting opportunities throughout the year. At the 1884-1885 Berlin Conference that
partitioned Africa, King Leopold II of Belgium was allowed to take possession of the Congo free
state. In order to make his possession profitable, Leopold began to exploit the region’s resources
including rubber imposing forced labor on the inhabitants including the Mbuti Pygmies. Beatings,
amputations, and murders were common means by which he reinforced this forced labor.
When a teenage Benga, returned from an elephant hunt and found his entire family and village
had been slaughtered by Force Publique, King Leopold's private army created specifically
for the enforcement of rubber production quotas, Benga now alone and defenseless,
was kidnapped by slave traders and put to work as a laborer in an agricultural village.
In 1904, Benga was "freed" or better still bought by an American missionary and amateur
anthropologist Samuel Phillips Verner tasked by the Louisiana Purchase Exposition to bring back
pygmies to be part of a human exhibition at the fair. Verner found Benga and negotiated
his release from the slave traders which to them was worth only pound of salt and
a bolt of cloth. A measly price to pay for a human life. Verner recruited other Africans
for the exhibit as well and the group was brought to St. Louis in June 1904.
The Africans were put on display and Ota Benga became a particularly popular spectacle,
attracting huge crowds. He was placed on exhibit at the same time with the Apache chief Geronimo.
Benga and Geronimo then became friends. Verner was awarded a gold medal in anthropology at
the close of the Expedition, for his efforts. Verner and Benga returned to central Africa at
the end of the Exposition but Benga, feeling he no longer belonged, chose to come back with the
anthropologist to the United States in 1906. Verner took Benga to the Bronx Zoo where he
was initially hired to help with the animals. Zoo officials however began to exhibit him in
the Monkey House where again he attracted large crowds. Benga was placed on exhibit
alongside the monkeys for a period of 20 days. While Benga proved a popular “attraction,” a
group of black New York clergymen led by Rev. James H. Gordon, were reaonably outraged and
demanded that he be freed. By the end of 1906, 23-year-old Benga was released to the custody
of Rev. Gordon who placed him in the New York City’s Howard Colored Orphan Asylum.
In 1910 Gordon arranged for Benga to relocate to Lynchburg, Virginia where he received formal
schooling and religious training for the first time. There he taught neighbourhood boys how to
hunt and fish and told stories of his adventures back home. Benga began working at a local tobacco
factory to pay for his journey back to Central Africa. By 1914, however World War I began and
severely limited passenger ship travel. On March 20, 1916, overcome with depression and heartbreak,
Ota Benga committed suicide in Lynchburg, Virginia. He was thought to be about 33
years of age at the time of his death. It took the Bronx zoo over a century to
admit to having put a human being on display alongside monkeys and apologize for their crime.
Ota Benga was a Mbuti pygmy native of what today is the Democratic Republic of Congo,
which recently was formally approved to be the seventh country in Africa's upcoming
superpower called the East African federation. The East African Federation is a proposed
political union of the seven sovereign states of the East African Community in the African
Great Lakes region. These include; Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Rwanda,
South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda all coming together as a single federated sovereign state.
The idea of this Federation has long since existed, born in the 1960s, but has taken a
long time to be made manifest, and is presently still in the works for a variety of reasons.
In September 2018, a committee was formed to begin the process
of drafting a regional constitution, and a draft constitution for the confederation
was set to be written by the end of 2021 with its implementation by 2023.
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subscribed to our community you’re missing out. While Africa has generally seen many decades of
instability, East African nations have made numerous attempts to collaborate and unify.
The original East African Community was created in 1967 which at the time used the East African
shilling and standard external tariffs. This was later dissolved in 1977. This unfortunate
dissolution occured following political disputes between member nations regarding legislative seats
and lack of will for nations to cooperate. There was also some grumbling within member states,
particularly Tanzania, that the integration would benefit Kenya the most,
as it is the most well-developed country out ofall the member states.
After six years of negotiation in the 1990s, the East African Community was reformed in 1999,
under the East African community treaty with a four step plan.
Customs union, common market, monetary union,and finally political federation. The East African
community has remained active since then. The goal of the East African community is to widen
and deepen cooperation among the Partner States in various key spheres for their mutual benefit.
These spheres include political, economic and social areas.
At 4,812,618 km2 approximately 1,858,162 square miles, the East African Federation
(EAF) would be the largest country in Africa and seventh-largest in the world, displacing India.
It would span the African continent from Indian Ocean to Atlantic Ocean.
With a population of 281,050,447 as of March 2022, with 22% of this population residing in the
urban areas. it would also be the most populous nation in Africa and fourth most populous in the
world. Its population would be greater than that of Russia, Japan, Brazil, Mexico, and Indonesia,
behind only China, India and the United States. The seven member nations are united mainly
by a shared cultural history, geography, similar dominant tropical savanna climate
within the community, which lends itself to similar agricultural and seasonal practices,
and a shared interest in bringing their nations out of instability and poverty. At present,
the lingua franca is English but was recently changed to Swahili, which is spoken by about 200
million persons in Africa.Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda were the original three partner staes.
The Republic of Rwanda and the Republic of Burundi acceded to the East African Community Treaty on 18
June 2007. South Sudan was added to the five previous member states in 2016,
and the Democratic Republic of Congo joined the fold in April 2022.
East Africa has been the fastest-growing region in Africa for decades. Uganda,
Kenya and Rwanda have each had 5, 6 and 7% growth respectively from 2010 until the pandemic.
Collectively, the East African Community’s GDP has grown 92% from $106 billion
in 2010 to $240 billion in 2019. The union's proposed currency is the East African shilling,
which according to a 2013 published report is slated to become the common currency of
five of the seven member countries by 2023. The acting president of Kenya since 2013,
Uhuru Kenyatta, serves as the East African Communities lead Summit Chairperson. Betty Maina,
a cabinet member for Uhuru Kenyatta in Kenya tasked as the Secretary for Industrialization,
Trade and Enterprise Development in Kenya, is the current acting lead Council Chairperson.
Dr. Peter Matuku Mathuki is the current acting Secretary General of the EAC,
having been appointed April 25, 2021, after years of serving on the East African Business
council. paul Kagame, President of Rwanda, has served on this Head of States board since
2007 when Rwanda was admitted to the East African community. Évariste Ndayishimiye,
President of Burundi, has served on the board since his election in 2020. Yoweri Museveni,
President of Uganda, has served on the board since Uganda was admitted into the East African
Community in 2000. Samia Suluhu Hassan, President of Tanzania and the only woman on this board,
has served as a Head of State since she was elected as president in 2021. Salva Kiir Mayardit,
President of South Sudan, has served on this board since 2016, when South Sudan acceded to the East
African Community. Felix Tshisekedi will serve on this Head of States Board in the next summit
after the Democratic Republic acceded in 2022. Also, within the East African Community organs,
the legislative system called the East African Court of Justice resides. It is composed of 5
individuals who settle disputes regarding the union of the partner nations. Justice Nestor
Kayobera of Burundi has served as the court's president since being appointed in 2021.
Other positions within the East African Community Organs are the registrar of
the East African Court of Justice, which is currently held by Yufnalis N. Okubo,
the position of the Counsel to the Community of the East African Community , currently held
by Dr. Anthony L. Kafumbe, the position of the Director-General of Customs and
Trades within the East African Community, presently held by Kenneth A. Bagamuhunda,
the position of the Deputy Secretary-General of Productive and Social sectors, currently held
by Hon. Christophe Bazivamo, and the position of Deputy Secretary-General of Planning and
Infrastructure, Eng. Steven D.M. Mlote. Presently, there are seven Heads of East
African community Institutions, these each fulfill different roles in the region. Vivienne Yeda Apopo
of Zambia is the current acting Director-General of East African Economic Development and has had
this position since 2009. Dr. Novat Twungubumwe of Burundi is the current acting Attorney General
and Executive Secretary of the East African Health Research Commission. Muyambi Fortunate of Uganda
is the current Assistant General Executive Secretary of the East African Science and
Technology Commission. Dr. James Otieno Jowi of Kenya is the serving Assistant General Executive
Secretary of the East African Kiswahili Commission. Prof. Gaspard Banyankimbona
of Uganda is the serving Executive Secretary of the Inter-University Council for East Africa.
Emile Nguza Arao of Kenya is the serving Executive Director of the Civil Aviation
Safety and Security Oversight Agency. Lilian K. Mukoronia of Kenya is the acting Registrar of
the East African Community Competition Authority. The East African Federation can be seen to have a
few foreseeable strengths. The greatest of these strengths will be the massive youth demographic,
Ofcourse given that it is properly harnessed. The population of the constituent parts of the
theoretical East African Community is composed of 65% under 30-year-olds. This youth bulge is
anticipated to grow to 75% of the population under the age of 25 in this region by 2030.
The East African federation would have a median age of 17.8 years and ensuring these youths are
on the path towards economic independence is vital to the success of the federation.
Another very significant economic benefit of the East African federation is as a result of
the custom union which was introduced in 2005. It would allow for free trade within the Federation,
and hence greater economic activity in the region, Ofcourse if the Federation is ever implemented.
A complementary union of goods and capital-labor laws was introduced in 2010, which would act
similarly, standardizing the rules in the region pertaining to these facets of the economy
and allowing for greater economic flexibility. The Integration and standardization in these
facets of the economy under one large Federation would make the area more economically appealing
to a multinational corporation seeking to operate in the region, as they would be dealing with one
unified front rather than needing to comply with each country's tax and fiscal policies
leading to lower operating costs in the region. As an added advantage, under the control of one
president, a united front will also provide easier diplomatic processes for multinational companies
to deal with. From this standpoint, the economic advantages of the Federation have been cited as
a rationale for global powers such as the US not opposing the Federation. Uniting a front of 280
million people and $240 billion worth of gross domestic product would have an economic appeal.
These plans will not take place until 2023. These economic benefits are recognized by
the people of these nations, leading to further support for the eventual union of these nations.
A survey conducted in Tanzania revealed that a majority of respondents thought that the union
of the East African Federation would produce better Trading opportunities in the region,
and a majority also responded that the union would provide better job availability in the region.
East African Community states have been receiving increased attention from foreign powers,
particularly the United States and China. China’s interaction with East African Community nations
has been mostly cooperative, as the Chinese government has had a recent interest in developing
a political and economic relationship with the region. Apparently, trade talks between the East
African Community and China started in June 2019, with the East African Community looking to foster
a more balanced trade relationship with China by convincing the government to purchase more primary
products like avocados. As the East African Community moves closer to unification, a closer
relationship with China could mean an increase in foreign direct investment in the region.
On the other hand, U.S. actions in the region have been more adversarial, removing duty-free
status from clothing imports from Rwanda after Rwanda increased duties on U.S. clothing exports.
These actions are indicative of the U.S's tendency to use trade policy as a means to
put political pressure on other countries. In the case of the East African Community, it will
become increasingly difficult for the United States to put economic pressure on the region
as it develops economically and forms a greater relationship with China and other Asian nations.
The East African Community and the proposed East African Federation have faced numerous
challenges and still encounter these challenges. While the union of these nations is recognized as
economically advantageous, the mechanics of conforming to the East African Community's
standards has posed economic issues for some countries seeking to join the EAC. The economic
prosperity of the nations attempting to join here varies greatly, with Burundi holding the lowest
GDP at approximately US$ 3 billion, nearly 100 billion less than Kenya's GDP (US$ 98 billion)This
discrepancy in wealth has impeded the less wealthy nations from conforming with some of the standards
set for the EAC. For instance, South Sudan took four years to accede to the EAC and still
fails to meet many of the criteria set for the Community. The South Sudanese president has asked
for aid from fellow member countries to meet these standards, citing a lack of staffing at customs,
immigration, and revenue/tax collection as the main source for failure to meet the standards
of the EAC integration process.Member nations have not been quick to help;
nations such as Kenya and Uganda are still charging visa fees on South Sudanese citizens,
something EAC countries are supposed to be exempt from as part of the Customs Union
Politically, it has been difficult for the EAC member states to reconcile their
individual political systems and unify into a common system. Tanzania, for example,
has had a one-party dominant state since 1992, and made a transition to market capitalism
relatively late compared to its neighbors in the EAC. Rwanda’s civil conflict in the 1990s
led to the rise of Paul Kagame as the linchpin of the country’s political system, becoming a
popular authoritarian leader. He has served as the President of Rwanda since his victory in the
civil war, and is the Chairman of the EAC Summit and a key figure in the push for unification.
The game theory of political decisions between multiple authoritarian-leaning governments
is important to note here, as this is a key obstacle to the unification process.
According to Freedom House’s 2018 report on freedom in the world, four out of the six
member states of the EAC are rated an aggregate score or 5.5 out of 7 or higher, with South Sudan
being the highest with a 7 out of 7 score. These scores rank most of the EAC nations among the
least politically free countries in the world. Additionally, the push toward globalizing the
region poses problems for local workers. If, for example, immigration increases rapidly to the EAF
after unification, there are currently very few worker protections to stop local industries
being overtaken by foreign companies and workers. Trade unionization and cooperation
between workers’ unions in member states has been posed as a solution to this issue, but
current organizations lack the strong leadership needed to unite workers across the region .
The proposed East African federation although not yet realized has the potential to be a superpower
in Africa. Whether or not this federation which for now is still on paper will be realized
is yet to be seen. Share your thoughts in the comments section.