Summary:

• The Federal Republic of Somalia will this morning deposit her instrument of ratification of the Treaty of Accession with the EAC Secretary General this morning making the Horn of Africa country the bloc’s 8th Partner State.

The Federal Republic of Somalia is set to formalize its membership as the 8th Partner State by depositing its instrument of ratification of the Treaty of Accession with the EAC Secretary General, Hon. (Dr.) Peter Mathuki.

A distinguished delegation, led by Somalia’s Minister of Commerce and Industry, Hon. Jibril Abdirashid Haji Abdi, has arrived in Arusha for this significant occasion. The delegation will hand over the instrument to Secretary General Mathuki at the EAC Headquarters.

The Treaty of Accession was previously signed by Somalia’s President Sheikh Hassan Mohamud and the Chairperson of the Summit of EAC Heads of State, H.E. Salva Kiir Mayardit, who also serves as the President of the Republic of South Sudan. The signing took place in Entebbe, Uganda, on December 15th, 2023, in the presence of Ugandan President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni.

As per the EAC Admission Procedure, Dr. Mathuki is tasked with officially declaring the Federal Republic of Somalia as a new member of the Community.

Following this declaration, the Secretary General will formally notify Somalia in writing that the country has deposited the Instrument of Ratification of the Treaty of Accession and is now a full member of the Community, as stipulated in Article 153(1) of the EAC Treaty.

Subsequently, the Secretary General will proceed to deposit the Treaty of Accession with both the African Union and the United Nations, underscoring the new member’s commitment to abide by the Treaty, in accordance with Article 153(2) of the Treaty.

The existing seven Partner States include the Republic of Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Republic of Kenya, the Republic of Rwanda, the Republic of South Sudan, the Republic of Uganda, and the United Republic of Tanzania.