As the coronavirus pandemic continues to disrupt businesses and threaten people’s livelihoods and health, the East African Community Heads of State on Tuesday held a consultative meeting to discuss a collective response. President Paul Kagame chaired the meeting in his capacity as the EAC Chairperson. The virtual conference, which was also attended by Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya, Yoweli Museveni of Uganda, and Salva Kirr of South Sudan—resolved to implement a series of measures to curb the spread of COVID-19. Here are the 10 key resolutions you need to know: 1. The Heads of State decided that partner states adopt a harmonised system for certification and sharing of COVID-19 test results. 2. The Heads of State directed the ministers responsible for health, trade, transport and EAC affairs to ensure that EAC regional covid-19 response plan and its key targeted interventions complements the partner states’ national covid-19 response plans. 3. They recognized the importance of information sharing during crisis such as the covid-19 pandemic and directed the ministers responsible for health, trade, transport and EAC affairs to finalise and adopt an EAC digital surveillance and tracking system for drivers and crew on COVID-19 for immediate use by partner states. 4. The Heads of State took note of efforts by partner states in undertaking bilateral engagements to address cross-border challenges and the EAC secretariat mission that assessed the situation on clearance processes at the borders during the pandemic. 5. They also directed partner states to prioritize regional value and supply chains to support local production of essential medical products and supplies including masks, sanitizers, soaps, coveralls, face shields, processed food, and ventilators as part of efforts to combat COVID-19 in the region. 6. The Heads of State further directed members to facilitate farming activities during the pandemic and post covid-19 period, support agro-processing and value chains as an import substitution measure. 7. They agreed to establish special purpose financing schemes for small and medium enterprises, to cushion them from the negative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. 8. The four Presidents designated the ministers responsible for health, transport and EAC affairs to be the focal persons for the regional COVID-19 response under the leadership of the ministers of health. 9. They directed the focal persons to immediately work on a regional mechanism for testing and certification of truck drivers prior to their departure at the point of origin and every two weeks, and report to the heads of state. 10. The Heads of State agreed to meet regularly to address the response efforts, and expressed the need for flexibility in the application of the EAC rules and procedures when faced with a crisis such as the Covid-19 pandemic.
