President Yoweri Museveni has arrived in Arusha Tanzania for the EAC Heads of State Retreat on the EAC Common Market and the 22nd Ordinary Summit of the EAC Heads of State scheduled for 21st and 22nd July, 2022 respectively at the Arusha International Conference Centre, in Arusha, Tanzania.
About 300 participants from Partner States, private sector, civil society and development partners are expected to attend both the High Level Retreat and the 22nd Summit.
During their High Level Retreat on the Common Market, the Heads of State are expected to, among other things: take stock of the progress of implementation of the EAC Common Market Protocol; adopt strategic measures to unlock the lags and bottlenecks in establishment of the Common Market; agree on a roadmap for the full realization of the Common Market, and; identify key areas where Development Partners can contribute to the attainment of the Common Market.
At their 22nd Ordinary Meeting, the EAC Heads of State will, among other things: consider the Report of the Council to the Summit; assent to Bills passed by the East African Legislative Assembly; consider the report of the High-level Summit Retreat on the EAC Common Market, and; appoint Judges to the East African Court of Justice.
Meanwhile, on the morning of Friday, 22nd July, 2022, the Heads of State are expected to launch the 42.4 km Arusha Bypass Road.
The bypass is part of the multinational Arusha – Holili /Taveta – Voi Road Project.
The bypass was co-funded by the African Development Bank (AfDB), the Africa Trade Fund and the Governments the United Republic of Tanzania and Republic of Kenya to the tune of US$173.86 million.
The Arusha-Holili/Taveta-Voi Road is a transport corridor of the East African Region that links the Northern Corridor at Voi to the Central Corridor across the common border at Holili/Taveta through Arusha, Babati to Dodoma and Singida.
The project’s development objectives are to improve regional transport infrastructure to support economic and social development programs in EAC member countries, and foster regional cooperation and integration within the region.
It is meant to develop road transport infrastructure through the development of the priority road corridor to reduce transport costs between Arusha and Voi to facilitate cross-border trade, enhance tourism, improve accessibility for the communities in the zone of influence to markets and social services in order to contribute to poverty reduction and promote regional integration.