In a shock move that has turned the East African Community (EAC) upside down, Tanzania has banned foreigners (read other East Africans) from 15 small and medium business sectors.

This was apparently to protect locals from competition by ‘foreigners’. For Kenyan businesspeople, the list was a body blow, given that these are the areas where Kenyans have a natural affinity and capacity to operate across the entire region and beyond.  

The areas include the sale of goods in retail stores and total trade, mobile money transfers, repair of mobile phones and electronic devices, salons, home, office and environmental cleaning, mobile food vendors, local postal services and parcel delivery, and tour guiding. 

Others are car hire services, brokerage of motor vehicles and real estate, advertising agency services, on-farm crop purchasing operations, provision of entertainment and gaming machines, and ownership and operation of micro and small industries. 

In other words, the entire Kenyan contingent living and doing business in Tanzania must vacate that country. In effect, Tanzania has just abrogated the entire treaty underpinning the EAC.  

For President William Ruto and his Ugandan counterpart Yoweri Museveni, this is a major headache. The two countries happen to have the most vibrant small business operators, who have fanned out across the entire region. The two countries will thus have the bulk of nationals being ejected by their counterpart, President Samia Suluhu Hassan. 

For too long, Tanzania has continued being the laggard of East African co-operation. Petulant, irritable, and juvenile, it has thrown tantrum after tantrum through the years.

The rest of the EAC, especially Kenya and Uganda, have indulged it for all this time, demonstrating total commitment to East African economic integration in both word and deed.  

The EAC bloc remains very attractive. In the past two years, Somalia and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have joined the EAC, following South Sudan in 2016. This proves the efficacy of the EAC. 

What to do? 

Though Tanzania has effectively repudiated the EAC treaty, it is not possible to eject it from the regional grouping. It is too integrated with its neighbours from a financial, cultural, security, and cross-border infrastructure point of view.  

But it is time to take a hard stance against Tanzania’s petulance. There must be consequences for its behaviour. 

The reason it has remained so petulant is that the countries of the region have been on an appeasement spree every time Tanzania throws a tantrum.

The worst Tanzanian president in this respect of completely disrespecting the EAC, was late John Pombe Magufuli.

In 2017, he even burnt day-old chicks from Kenya, and confiscated and auctioned cattle Kenyan Maasai had gone to graze in his country. Very childish indeed. 

Instead of facing Tanzania head-on, Kenya cowed from confrontation.

Uganda went even further and rewarded Tanzania’s petulance by cancelling its multibillion-dollar deal for a pipeline to evacuate its oil through Kenya in favour of one passing through Tanzania. Suluhu’s actions clearly demonstrate that appeasement has been an abysmal failure! 

EAC must call out Tanzania. Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda must be ready to forge forward with integration. Tanzania can catch up as and when its ready.   

[email protected]