Flags of the East African Community members. PHOTO | FILE |
Signs of protectionism in East Africa since the commencement of the bloc’s Common Market regime have frustrated free movement of people and services. Integration efforts have been hampered by work permits required by some countries and delays in ratification of mutual recognition agreements for various professionals.
Protectionist tendencies exhibited by some member states are mainly driven by the desire to shield certain sectors from foreign rivals. Whereas tariffs charged against foreign firms and professionals entering certain markets offer attractive revenue collection streams for countries, the overall share of tariff revenues in the East African Community has dropped to around 1.5 per cent of GDP since the Common Market was launched in July 2010, according to Mario Mansur, a tax expert based at the International Monetary Fund.
