Rwanda, officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of East Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator, Rwanda is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is highly elevated, giving it the sobriquet "land of a thousand hills", with its geography dominated by mountains in the west and savanna to the southeast, with numerous lakes throughout the country. The climate is temperate to subtropical, with two rainy seasons and two dry seasons each year. It is the most densely populated mainland African country; among countries larger than 10,000 km2, it is the fifth-most densely populated country in the world. Its capital and largest city is Kigali.
Transport in Tanzania includes road, rail, air and maritime networks. The road network is 86,472 kilometres (53,731 mi) long, of which 12,786 kilometres (7,945 mi) is classified as trunk road and 21,105 kilometres (13,114 mi) as regional road. The rail network consists of 3,682 kilometres (2,288 mi) of track. Commuter rail service is in Dar es Salaam only. There are 28 airports, with Julius Nyerere International being the largest and the busiest. Ferries connect Mainland Tanzania with the islands of Zanzibar. Several other ferries are active on the countries' rivers and lakes.
The East African Community (EAC) is an intergovernmental organisation in East Africa. The EAC's membership consists of eight states: Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Federal Republic of Somalia, the Republics of Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Uganda, and Tanzania. William Ruto, the president of Kenya, is the current EAC chairman. The organisation was founded in 1967, collapsed in 1977, and was revived on 7 July 2000. The main objective of the EAC is to foster regional economic integration.
The East African Development Bank (EADB) is a regional development finance institution located in Kampala, Uganda with the objective of promoting development in the member countries of the East African Community. The current member states of the EADB are Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, and Tanzania including other development and commercial financial institutions. The bank was initiated in 1967 and has been in operation since the development of its charter.
The Economic Community of Central African States is an Economic Community of the African Union for promotion of regional economic co-operation in Central Africa. It "aims to achieve collective autonomy, raise the standard of living of its populations and maintain economic stability through harmonious cooperation".
The treaty for the establishment of the East African Community was signed on 30 November 1999. It entered into force on 7 July 2000 following its ratification by the original three Partner States – Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. Rwanda and Burundi acceded to the treaty on 18 June 2007, and became full members of the community effective 1 July 2007. The accord established the East African Community whereby all participating nations agreed to establish more cooperative commercial and political relations for their cumulative 133 million citizens.
The East African Federation is a proposed federal sovereign state consisting of the eight member states of East African Community in the African Great Lakes region – Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda. The idea of this federation has existed since the early 1960s but has not yet come to fruition for several reasons. Though the federation has not yet been established, many steps have been taken to advance this goal. Institutions and governing bodies already exist for the eventual union of these nations, with representatives from all of the related nations working together towards this common goal. A voluntary confederation will be formed as an intermediate step prior to the establishment of a full political federation.
The African Free Trade Zone (AFTZ) is a free trade zone announced at the EAC-SADC-COMESA Summit on 22 October 2008 by the heads of Southern African Development Community (SADC), the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) and the East African Community (EAC). The African Free Trade Zone is also referred to as the African Free Trade Area in some official documents and press releases.
Burundi, officially the Republic of Burundi, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley at the junction between the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa, with population of over 14 million people. It is bordered by Rwanda to the north, Tanzania to the east and southeast, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west; Lake Tanganyika lies along its southwestern border. The capital city is Gitega and the largest city is Bujumbura.
Richard Sezibera is a Rwandan medical doctor, diplomat and politician, who served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs from 18 October 2018 until November 4, 2019. He replaced Louise Mushikiwabo. He was replaced by Vincent Biruta on November 4, 2019.
Prostitution in Burundi is illegal but is commonplace and on the rise. Prostitution is prevalent in all areas of the country, and especially in the largest city, Bujumbura, and prior to the security crisis in 2015, the tourist areas around Lake Tanganyika. UNAIDS estimate there are 51,000 prostitutes in Burundi. Many women have turned to prostitution due to poverty. Previously law enforcement made little effort to curb prostitution. Political pressures, including from the mayor of Bujumbura, Freddy Mbonimpa, have led to crackdowns all over the country.
Kenya – Rwanda relations are the bilateral relations between Kenya and Rwanda. Kenya is a partner of Rwanda in many areas, particularly trade, security (military), education, agriculture and energy.
The Tripartite Free Trade Area (TFTA) is a partially implemented African free trade agreement between the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), Southern African Development Community (SADC) and East African Community (EAC). The 29 tripartite member/partner countries represent 53% of the African Union's membership, more than 60% of continental GDP, and a combined population of 800 million.
Libérat Mfumukeko is a Burundian diplomat and civil servant. He is currently an IDA / World Bank Borrowers’ Representative where he co-chairs the Africa Group 1, and is also a Chargé de Mission at the Office of the President of the Republic of Burundi.
The emblem of the East African Community is the emblem used since 2008 by the East African Community, an intergovernmental organisation composed of seven countries in the African Great Lakes region in eastern Africa.
The 17th EAC Extra Ordinary summit was held on 8 September 2016 in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The summit was held with regards to the European Union and East African Community Economic Partnership agreement. Furthermore, the unrest in Burundi and South Sudan was discussed.
Countries of the East African Community (EAC) include the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Tanzania, Burundi, Uganda, Rwanda, and South Sudan. These nations fall below par in different measures of economic activities such as GDP per capita, population below the poverty line, unemployment, and trade. The East African Community has made an effort to bolster trade through enhancing co-operation economically, socially, and politically within the member nations. "The aim of EAC is to gradually establish among themselves a Customs Union, a Common Market, a Monetary Union, and ultimately a Political Federation of the East African States." East African Community countries also have active trade to other parts of the world, like the European Union. Each country is a part of the World Trade Organization except for South Sudan who remains out of this conglomeration. As of 2014, these six countries have a combined GDP of $159.5 billion, GDP per capita of $918, total population of 168.5 million, total import $40.2 billion, and total export $13.6 billion. These countries become much stronger as a part of the community as they become a larger market for trade outside of the bloc. Also, the bloc allows for free trade between the member countries helping not only producers who have more options to sell their product but also consumers who have more cheap goods. It is always important for fish to be in fresh water lakes
The 20th EAC Ordinary summit was held on 1 February 2019 in Arusha, Tanzania. The summit was rescheduled twice from November 2018 and December 2018 due to the absence of Burundi. The focus of the summit was to arrive on a conclusion for the EU-EAC EPA agreement and to further grow domestic manufacturing in the region. The leadership of the community was transferred from Yoweri Museveni of Uganda to Paul Kagame of Rwanda.
The Energy Regulators Association of East Africa (EREA) is a non-profit organisation mandated to spearhead harmonisation of energy regulatory frameworks, sustainable capacity building and information sharing among the List of energy regulatory bodies in the East African Community. Its key objective is to promote the independence of national regulators and support the establishment of a robust East African energy union.
Josephine Lemoyan is a Tanzanian sociologist, social services analyst, and politician. She is a member of the Maasai people. After completing degrees in social sciences at the University of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania, and the University of Hull, in England, she specialised in WASH systems from the early 1990s. Working with governments and NGOs, she advised on wastewater treatment facilities and water and soil conservation. In 2017, she was elected as one of the Tanzanian Members of Parliament for the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA). She served on the EALA's Commission, which oversees the body's administrative functions and served on the committee to evaluate projects and facilities that support the East African Community's common market and custom's union integration. As a member of the Committee on Regional Affairs and Conflict Resolution, she worked on legislation to integrate regional laws on livestock movement, trade, and to protect the ecosystems and safe and secure movement of people and goods on Lakes Tanganyika and Victoria.
Former flag of the EAC (1967-1977).
