Kenya-Uganda-Tanzania

East African Federation: Dream or Reality?

Abstract

In the first part of my article, I will briefly introduce the three defining countries of the East African region: Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania. After presenting the “country profiles,” I will examine the circumstances of the establishment of the East African Community (EAC) formed by these three states, giving a brief historical overview of the initial period and the reasons for the decline that occurred within a decade of the Community’s official launch. I will talk about the revival that began in the 1990s and outline the idea of an East African Federation formulated at a recent EAC summit. Finally, I will assess the possibilities of regional cooperation in East Africa, with particular regard to the relationship between the EAC and the European Union.