East African Community floats 113 million Dollars in budget estimates. But where exactly will the money come from?

It is that time of the budget again and the East African Community floats its own estimates amounting to 113 million Dollars, with the Arusha-based secretariat set to be gobbling a large chunk of that.

The Minister of East African Community Affairs of the Republic of South Sudan and the Chair Council of the EAC Council of Ministers, Deng Aloor Kuol, tabled the 2024/2025 fiscal year budget of the East African Community before the East African Legislative Assembly in Arusha.

Where will the money come from?

The total budget allocation to EAC organs and Institutions for the Financial Year 2024/2025 is pegged at USD 112,984,442 with 61 percent of the figure expected to come from the eight partner states contributions, amounting to USD 67,785,519.

The remaining 39 percent, equivalent to USD 43,936,292 will be raised from internal revenues as well as donations from partner states.

In his speech to the Assembly, Legislator Deng urged the House to debate and approve the proposals by the Council of Ministers for the budget of EAC for the Financial year 2024/2025.

 Themed “Sustainable Economic Transformation through Fiscal Consolidation and Investment in climate change mitigation and adaptation for improved livelihoods” the proposed budget will dedicate more resources to the Arusha-based secretariat.

The Minister presented an overview of the region’s Economic Performance Outlook, Review of EAC Program Performance for Financial Year 2023/2024; The priorities of Financial Year 2024/2025; The Audit Report for the Financial Year 2022/2023; and The EAC Budget for the Financial Year 2024/2025 and highlighted priority interventions; expected outcomes; budget proposals and allocation to EAC Organs and Institutions.

Deng acknowledged that the EAC Budget Estimates for the Financial Year 2024/2025 is coming at a time when the EAC economies are “experiencing unfavorable global and financial conditions which have had negative spillovers from the geo-political conflicts and the impact of climate change that continue to weigh on the partner states’ economic performance”.

The Minister also noted the high fuel and food import prices in the region that have made it costly to access financial market access and have put pressure on the exchange rates and foreign reserves.

But in spite of those challenges, the economic performance in the EAC region in 2023 continued to improve, recording “GDP growth rates ranging from 2.8 percent to 8.1 percent, while partner states economies are projected to continue improving with economic Growth expected to be higher than the global and Sub-Saharan Africa growth rates of 3.2 percent and 3.8 percent” respectively, largely because of “strong performance in different sectors, supported by sustained public Investment”.

The Legislator outlined priority programmes implemented and key achievements for the Financial Year 2023/2024, in the areas of Regional Security; Private Sector engagement; Trade facilitation; Monetary Union Transparency; Technology innovations; economic welfare enhancement; sustainable Agriculture projects for robust services; EAC Jumuiya Automotive Industry Platform (JAIP) for industry development; and the implementation of the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) from Uganda to Tanzania, among others.

The Regional Peace and Security is allocated USD 5.1 million; Trade and Investment Promotion, allocated USD 4.7 million; Institutional Development, allocated USD 10.4 million; Multi-Sectoral Infrastructure development, allocated USD 6.2 million; Enhancing Social and Productive Sectors, gets USD 20.3Million and the EAC organs and Institutions, will be given USD 66.3 million.

EAC Secretariat spending is no secret

The EAC Organs and Institutions which took the lion’s share of this Financial Year Budget estimates at a whooping USD 66.3 Million were allocated funds as follows:

The EAC Secretariat is given USD 51,677,120; the East African Court of Justice gets USD 4,858,553, the East African Legislative Assembly is allocated USD 20,469,040 and the Lake Victoria Basin Commission gets USD 7,787,519.

Others are the Inter-University University Council for East Africa, getting USD 17,287,618 12; the Lake Victoria Fisheries Organization gets 3,109,586; the East African Science and Technology Commission earns USD 2,177,192 and the East African Kiswahili Commission getting USD 1,641,445.

On the other hand the East African Health Research Commission has been provided USD 2,451,157; while the East African Competition Authority pockets USD 1,525, 212.

Legislator Deng stressed that this budget for the Financial Year 2024/2025 “embodies a strategic approach aimed at fostering sustainable economic transformation through fiscal consolidation and targeted investments in climate change mitigation and adaptation”.

Earlier on at the opening of the Assembly, the Secretary General of the EAC Veronica Mueni Nduva took oath as an Ex-Officio of the East African Legislative Assembly in accordance with Article 48 of the Treaty.