High level negotiation with South Sudan to join the Community is set for 7 - 8 November in Arusha

The Secretary General of the East African Community (EAC) Amb. Dr. Richard Sezibera has disclosed that the meeting of the High Level Negotiations Team with the Republic of South Sudan to join the Community is scheduled to take place 7-8 November 2013 in Arusha, Tanzania to commence its work, and determine its rules of procedure and programme.

At its 27^th Meeting held on 31 August 2013, the EAC Council of Ministers approved the proposed process of handling the negotiations with the Republic of South Sudan to join the East African Community; established a High Level Negotiation Team; directed the Partner States to nominate three (3) Members to the High Level Negotiation Team by 30 September 2013; and directed the Secretariat to thereafter convene a meeting of the High Level Negotiation Team to start the negotiations with the Republic of South Sudan.

A visit of a High Level Mission of the Government of the Republic of South Sudan is also expected at the EAC Headquarters in Arusha, Tanzania in early November 2013.

The Negotiation process is expected to be structured in three (3) phases namely; technical negotiations involving technical experts from the EAC (i.e. the three nominees from each Partner State) and the Republic of South Sudan; second phase will involve Permanent/Principal Secretaries to consider recommendations from the technical phase and recommend to an appropriate Ministerial Negotiations. The third phase will be at the Ministerial level. Each of these phased negotiations will systematically feed into each other.