Somalia and the EAC

How do Somalia and the EAC relate today?

Somalia is one of the eight Partner States of the East African Community (EAC), with Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda (EAC, home page; EAC, Partner States). It became a full member on 4 March 2024 (EAC, home page).

The members list of the fifth East African Legislative Assembly (2022 to 2027) shows at least nine elected members from Somalia (EALA, fifth Assembly members):

• Ambassador Zahra Ali Hassan
• Faisal Roble
• Hussein Hassan Abdi
• Fahma Ahmed Nur
• Ilham Ali Gassar
• Faduma Abdullahi Mohamud
• Abdirahman Bashir Shariff
• Ambassador Abukar Abdi Osman
• Dr Abdisalam Hadliye Omer

The World Bank has published an economic assessment of what accession means for Somalia's economy (World Bank, Somalia overview).

When did Somalia join the EAC?

The road took 12 years:

• 6 March 2012: Somalia's Transitional Federal Government asked to join. Ambassador Abdi Hakim Ali Yasin, special envoy of President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, delivered the request in Nairobi. It was addressed to Kenya's President Mwai Kibaki, then EAC chair, and handed to Foreign Minister Moses Wetangula (Capital FM, 6 March 2012). Al Jazeera dates the first application to 2011 (Al Jazeera, 29 November 2023).
• August 2022: after returning to office, President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud appointed a special envoy for the accession (Al Jazeera, 29 November 2023).
• 24 November 2023: the 23rd Ordinary Summit in Arusha admitted Somalia as the eighth member (EAC press release, 25 November 2023).
• 15 December 2023: President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and South Sudan's President Salva Kiir, as EAC chair, signed the Treaty of Accession at State House, Entebbe, Uganda. Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni was witness (EAC press release, 15 December 2023; EAC, home page). Capital FM gives the signing date as 16 December (Capital FM, 4 March 2024).
• 4 March 2024: Somalia deposited its instrument of ratification with Secretary General Peter Mathuki at EAC headquarters in Arusha and became a full member (EAC, home page; Capital FM, 4 March 2024).

The treaty gave Somalia six months after signing to ratify. It also asked the EAC Council of Ministers to draw up a roadmap for Somalia's integration (EAC press release, 15 December 2023).

What does Somalia pay and receive?

At the 2023 summit, leaders agreed a new formula for paying the EAC budget: 65% shared equally among members and 35% by size of economy (EAC press release, 25 November 2023).

Membership opens the EAC common market to Somalia. Kenya's President William Ruto said Somalia's entry added "an extra 15 million people" to the common market (EAC press release, 25 November 2023). President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud pointed to Somalia's coastline of about 3,000 miles (same source).

Livestock is Somalia's main export, followed by bananas, fish, hides and skins (Al Jazeera, 29 November 2023). For trade figures see Trade, exports and imports.

Who built the tie?

• Abdi Hakim Ali Yasin: special envoy of President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed; delivered the 2012 application (Capital FM, 6 March 2012).
• Sharif Sheikh Ahmed: President of the Transitional Federal Government when Somalia applied (Capital FM, 6 March 2012). See Sharif Sheikh Ahmed.
• Moses Wetangula: Kenya's foreign minister, who received the request and said it would go to the EAC organs (Capital FM, 6 March 2012).
• Hassan Sheikh Mohamud: President; named a special envoy in 2022, called admission "a historic one", and signed the treaty (Al Jazeera; EAC press release, 25 November 2023). See Hassan Sheikh Mohamud.
• Peter Mathuki: EAC Secretary General; attended the signing and received the ratification (EAC press release, 15 December 2023; Capital FM, 4 March 2024).
• Salva Kiir Mayardit: President of South Sudan and EAC chair from the November 2023 summit; signed the treaty for the EAC (EAC press release, 15 December 2023).
• Évariste Ndayishimiye: President of Burundi; chaired the EAC until the admission summit (EAC press release, 25 November 2023).
• Yoweri Museveni: President of Uganda; hosted and witnessed the signing in Entebbe (EAC press release, 15 December 2023).

What did people in Somalia say?

Al Jazeera recorded a range of named Somali views in November 2023 (Al Jazeera, 29 November 2023):

• Mohamed Abdi Waare, former Hirshabelle president, spoke of economic and strategic openings. See Mohamed Abdi Waare.
• Abdirahman Abdishakur, MP, said the EAC is mainly an economic bloc and Somalia had few goods or services to offer yet.
• Bashir Sheikh-Ali, of the Heritage Institute, said gaps in infrastructure and an independent judiciary could limit Somalia's part.
• Abdullahi Abdi, a Horn of Africa analyst, said the bloc gives Kenya and Somalia a way to settle future disputes.

Does the EAC have offices in Somalia?

The EAC Secretariat and the Assembly sit in Arusha, Tanzania (EAC press release, 15 December 2023). No EAC office in Somalia was found in EAC sources. For the bodies that do work inside Somalia, see International bodies in Somalia.

How does the EAC deal with Somaliland and the member states?

The EAC admitted the Federal Republic of Somalia as a single Partner State (EAC, Partner States). Al Jazeera noted that the federal government's relations with Somaliland had worsened over the disputed town of Las Anod, and that friction between the federal government and member states could slow ratification (Al Jazeera, 29 November 2023).

Have there been disputes?

• Kenya maritime case: Somalia took its sea border with Kenya to the International Court of Justice, which ruled largely in its favour in 2021; Kenya rejected the ruling. Analysts named by Al Jazeera saw the EAC as a forum for such disputes (Al Jazeera, 29 November 2023).
• Security worries: some critics said Somalia could bring security problems into the bloc; others pointed to conflict in the DRC and South Sudan, already members (same source).

Related pages

• Somalia and IGAD
• Somalia and the African Union
• Somalia and the World Bank
• Trade, exports and imports
• International bodies in Somalia