Opinion : Somalia Joined the EAC: Is It Ready to Follow the Rules It Accepted?

 “Somalia’s EAC membership will ultimately be measured by whether regional commitments become coherent laws, capable institutions and consistently enforced national rules.” Omar Khalif Abdi

 EAC Membership: From Accession to Implementation

Somalia’s entry into the East African Community (EAC) was presented as an important economic and regional opportunity. That is true, but membership also creates responsibilities that extend into domestic law and administration. Somalia is now expected to make its legal and regulatory systems work within a regional framework. The central issue is therefore no longer whether Somalia has joined the EAC, but whether the country is prepared to implement the rules and commitments that come with membership.

Somalia was admitted to the EAC on 24 November 2023 and became its eighth Partner State on 4 March 2024, following ratification of the Treaty of Accession and deposit of the instrument of ratification. These dates mark more than a diplomatic achievement. They mark the beginning of Somalia’s practical integration into the Community. The IMF notes that Somalia’s integration is gradual and that the Federal Government and EAC Secretariat prepared a roadmap for aligning Somalia’s national laws, regulations and administrative guidelines with the EAC framework.

Membership Creates Duties#

The legal obligations are not optional. Article 8 of the EAC Treaty requires Partner States to direct policies and resources towards implementing the Treaty, coordinate relevant policies and avoid measures that could undermine its objectives. It also requires legislation necessary to give effect to the Treaty to be enacted and effectively implemented. Article 16 provides that EAC Council regulations, directives and decisions adopted under the Treaty are binding on Partner States within their relevant jurisdictions. Compliance must therefore be reflected in domestic law and administrative practice.

This means that compliance cannot be reduced to signing agreements, attending EAC meetings or establishing an EAC desk within a ministry. Compliance is a domestic legal responsibility. It requires legislation, regulations, administrative procedures, institutional coordination and enforcement. Somalia may formally support regional integration while remaining practically non-compliant if its domestic rules continue to contradict, obstruct or inconsistently apply EAC obligations.

Somalia’s Internal Challenge#

Somalia’s difficulty is that it must align with the EAC while also dealing with differences within its own regulatory system. The IMF identifies differences between Federal Government and Federal Member State practices as a challenge to creating a coherent national framework. Customs, taxation, trade, investment, licensing and labour-related rules are particularly sensitive because regional integration depends on predictable procedures.

If similar activities are governed or administered differently across the country, national implementation becomes difficult. EAC integration could therefore expose weaknesses in Somalia’s domestic legal architecture that have previously been managed separately. The challenge is not only external harmonisation with the EAC; it is also achieving sufficient internal coherence for Somalia to speak and act consistently as one Partner State.

The Legal Consequences#

Weak compliance can produce direct legal and administrative consequences. Different rules can create uncertainty about which law applies, which authority has jurisdiction and what procedures businesses and individuals must follow. Such uncertainty can increase disputes and transaction costs. It can also create tension between domestic measures and applicable EAC obligations.

The Treaty provides mechanisms for dealing with Community obligations and disputes. It also provides under Article 143 that a Partner State which defaults on its financial and other Treaty obligations may face action determined by the Summit on the recommendation of the Council. Compliance should therefore not be treated as a ceremonial exercise. Passing legislation is not enough if the institutions responsible for applying it cannot enforce it consistently.

Integration Without Competitiveness#

EAC membership gives Somalia access to a larger regional market and can support trade, investment and the movement of goods, services, labour and capital. But access works both ways. Somali businesses will face stronger competition from producers in other Partner States. The IMF warns that Somalia’s relatively weak industrial base, agricultural sector and human capital could allow more developed economies to gain a stronger position in Somali trade.

The economic risk is therefore not simply whether Somalia can enter the regional market, but whether Somali producers can compete within it. Opening the market without improving domestic productivity, infrastructure, skills and business conditions could increase imports without generating comparable growth in domestic production. Compliance should therefore be accompanied by measures that strengthen the competitiveness of Somali businesses.

Domestication: “Turning EAC Commitments into Somali Law”#

Domestication should be treated as a structured legal process rather than a series of disconnected amendments. Somalia needs a national audit of EAC obligations against federal laws, Federal Member State legislation, regulations and actual administrative practice.

The purpose should be practical: identify what already complies, what requires amendment, what needs new legislation and what can be implemented through regulations or administrative measures. This approach would make compliance deliberate rather than reactive and reduce the risk of ministries producing overlapping or contradictory amendments without considering the wider legal framework.

Compliance Must Apply Across Somalia#