South Sudan's National Policy and Strategy on EAC Implementation.

In October 2016, South Sudan officially became a full member of the East African Community (EAC). This marked a significant milestone with the potential to drive economic growth and address issues such as poverty reduction, social cohesion, and stability. As part of the EAC, South Sudan committed to implementing a Customs Union, establishing a Common Market, and working towards the formation of a Monetary Union by 2024. Additionally, the country pledged regional cooperation across various sectors, including health, education, infrastructure, gender, statistics, judiciary, defense, security, foreign policy, culture, sports, and more. Furthermore, the South Sudan government has undertaken to align its laws and regulations with those of the East African Community. Given the extensive scope of the EAC's work program, there is a need for a well-defined policy and strategy to guide the implementation of numerous complex laws, commitments, and obligations. A crucial means to facilitate these reforms is to provide a comprehensive plan outlining the steps that key institutions should follow to participate in EAC projects and programs. This is the primary purpose of the South Sudan National Policy and Strategy on EAC Integration – to set clear objectives and a strategic roadmap for achieving successful integration within the EAC. To this end, the document outlines the details and the work plan for the implementation of, respectively, the EAC Customs Union, the EAC Common Market, and the EAC Monetary Union.
In accordance with the Vision of creating a stable, integrated and prospering South Sudan with a competitive, diversified, and sustainably growing economies participating fully in regional and global trade and investment, the Policy intends to achieve the following objectives (i) support South Sudan to advance its agenda in the EAC integration process; (ii) support South Sudan to benefit from regional integration; (iii) develop a clear, well spelt out, strategic approach for effective implementation of EAC related reforms. These objectives will be achieved by (i) establishing a coherent institutional framework that outlines the scope and commitments of the East African Community (EAC) and regional integration. This framework will also define the management structure and operational methods; (ii) integrating the regional integration agenda into legislation that underpins government institutions and ensuring it becomes part of their mandates and strategic plans; (iii) developing a comprehensive set of indicators and targets that South Sudan aims to achieve in EAC regional integration. This will be accompanied by a Monitoring and Evaluation Plan tied to the responsibilities of various institutions; (iv) ensuring robust stakeholder engagement, involving policymakers, implementers, the private sector, and civil society in EAC regional integration matters; (v) fulfilling the commitments made when South Sudan signed the Treaty of Accession to the EAC.
Beside the general objectives, the Policy outlines the following sector-specific goals in various areas of cooperation within the East African Community (EAC) (i) Agriculture and Food Security, to enhance regional competitiveness and reduce food and fertilizer imports by adding value to agricultural products and improving sustainable agricultural production; (ii) Environment and Natural Resources Management, for effectively utilizing and sustainably managing natural resources; (iii) Tourism and Wildlife Management, planning a joint marketing of tourism and wildlife management efforts to establish the region as a unified tourist destination; (iv) Health, aiming at improving healthcare services, including addressing diseases like COVID-19, Tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, and malaria; (v) Gender, participating in EAC gender integration programs, particularly focusing on enhancing women's access to economic opportunities and leveling the playing field in all socioeconomic sectors; (vi) Political Matters, with the long-term goal of establishing common foreign and security policies to ensure regional security, peace, and governance improvements; (vii) Legal and Judicial Affairs, aligning its legal frameworks with EAC commitments to benefit from regional integration; (viii) Private Sector and Civil Society, encouraging the private sector's role in socioeconomic development and emphasizing the participation of civil society in regional integration to safeguard citizens' rights and interests; (ix) Culture and Sports to fully participate in EAC related initiatives.