BY: Prof. Phillip Kasaija Apuuli
From the outset, it must be observed that the Covid-19 pandemic has further exposed the weak underbelly of the East African integration. Whilst the regional leaders and their Ministers of Health held virtual meetings to discuss the pandemic and how the EAC can respond, coordination of the regional efforts against the disease has been lacking. Article 118 of the EAC Treaty states that partner states shall cooperate in health matters including ‘taking joint action towards … the control [of] pandemics … that might endanger the health and welfare of the residents of the Partner States …’ In conformity with this provision, the EAC Secretariat formulated an ‘East African Community Covid-19 Response Plan’ in April 2020. The plan was designed to support and coordinate the regional response to the pandemic. Specifically, the plan aimed at the following: ensuring a joint and well-coordinated mechanism to fight Covid-19 in the region, facilitating the movement of goods and services in the region, minimizing the number of people who become infected or sick with Covid-19 and minimizing morbidity and mortality from the Covid-19 pandemic in the region. However, other than following this plan, the individual East African countries have adopted national strategies (including praying) to combat the pandemic. In Uganda, I have not heard any public official (including the President in his numerous statements on Covid-19) referring to the regional plan.
