The President of the Inter-University Council for East Africa (IUCEA) has urged tertiary institutions in the East African Community to eliminate all discriminatory tuition structures on students from within the EAC.

A survey by this newspaper, last week, indicated that, where as Rwandan institutions of higher learning charge students from other EAC member states the same amounts as Rwandan students are required to pay, the situation is different in the other member countries which treat students from the other East African region as international students.

Such a scenario is not only against the letter and spirit of the EAC integration process, but also risks eroding confidence, especially among the youth, in the integration cause itself. 

As such, the EAC is missing the opportunity to garner support for integration from the young people, who hold the key to the future success of the bloc.

EAC member states should embrace policies that facilitate integration and not the other way round. For instance, when the Government of Rwanda floated shares in Bralirwa and Bank of Kigali IPO, all East Africans were considered local buyers, and were allocated the largest portion of the shares.

It is through such initiatives where all East Africans are treated as one citizenry that the integration process will be successful and sustainable.

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