{{On February 20 this year, Presidents Paul Kagame of Rwanda, Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya and Yoweri Museveni of Uganda during a tripartite summit in Kampala, signed the ‘Mutual Peace and Security’ pact with the aim of strengthening the Northern Corridor Integration Projects.}}
The Northern Corridor is an initiative aimed at fast tracking regional development through joint infrastructure, trade, political and economic for greater integration process.
The Head of States then directed Chiefs of services from the three East African Community (EAC) bloc members to develop a framework that will fast-track the implementation of the pact.
{{Rwanda is the lead country in this project.}}
Since Monday, experts from Police, Intelligence, Immigration and Correctional services in the three countries have been meeting in Kigali to develop the pact implementation framework including policies, organs and structures that will strengthen security within the region.
Burundi and South Sudan also attended as observers.
The implementation framework was amended and approved by Chiefs of services on Thursday prior to subsequent approval by the committee of ministers on Friday, before transmission to the summit later next month.
{{What the pact holds for EAC citizens}}
For about a decade now, the EAC countries have been active trying to move from paper to action in various integration projects.
In November last year, five Heads of State convened in Kampala during their 15th ordinary summit and appended their signatures on the Monetary Union Protocol and paved way for a process that would lead to the adoption of a single currency across the five partner states; Burundi, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Rwanda.
The EAC Monetary Union became the third pillar to be signed by the bloc after the Customs Union signed in 2005 and the Common Market Protocol that was assented to in 2010.
Coupled with the launch of the use of national IDs by citizens of Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda to travel anywhere among the three countries and the construction of the railway line connecting the Northern corridor to the port of Mombasa in the offing, security experts say it is likely to come with security challenges.
According to article two of the pact, security services from partner states will therefore partner to combat crimes and ensure safety of people and safeguard development of member countries against instability that might come with the new development initiatives.
Security services from the three countries have therefore established committees of intelligence, police, immigration and correctional services among others to spearhead the implementation of the agreed 14-key areas of cooperation to promote and maintain stability for the development of the Northern Corridor.
Areas of cooperation include conflict prevention, management and resolution, prevention of genocide, combating terrorism and suppressing piracy.
Others include Peace Support Operations, disaster risk reduction, management and response, management of refugees, control of proliferation of illicit arms and light weapons, combating financial, organized and cross-border crimes such as human and drug trafficking, money laundering and cyber crimes and correctional services including exchange of prisoners, detention, custody and rehabilitation of offenders.
Rwanda’s minister of Internal Security, Sheikh Musa Fazil Harelimana, during the Council of Ministers on Friday, said this cooperation is inevitable if the integration projects are to be successful.
“Today marks another step in promoting and maintaining safety of our people and their property and a signal to fast-track and safeguard the Northern Corridor integration projects,” Minister Harelimana said.
The Minister of Defence, James Kabarebe, who officiated the closing ceremony urged member countries to “begin working immediately” adding that the “collective security and defence is in our hands.”
“We need to demonstrate to our people they can move freely by eradicating terror organisations from our region and fight transnational crimes collectively,” Minister Kabarebe said.
“The Northern Corridor initiatives by our respective Heads of State such as infrastructure development, free movement of people and goods and single customs are opening up unprecedented opportunities for the people of the three countries. We have, as a priority, to put in place measures to safeguard them,” he added.
Minister Kabarebe noted that the security challenges in the region are there “for us to solve and we shouldn’t expect any external help. We can only take Rwanda’s example in 1994.”
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