Prime Cabinet secretary Musalia Mudavadi has called for a bold rethink of East Africa’s integration agenda, urging leaders to confront what he described as missed opportunities in regional unity.
Addressing participants at the Kenya–Tanzania Business Forum, Mudavadi questioned what the region’s economic trajectory would look like today if past joint systems such as East African Airways, East African Railways, and shared port infrastructure had been sustained and modernised.
“What would East Africa look like today if East African Airways, East African Railways, and our shared ports systems were still fully integrated? Why do we still operate with multiple currencies while other regions have moved towards deeper economic unity?,”Musalia said in a statement.
He also raised concern over the continued use of multiple national currencies, arguing that East Africa risks lagging behind other regions that have advanced towards deeper economic and monetary integration.
Mudavadi said the reflections were meant to push leaders beyond nostalgia and into practical action, insisting that the original vision of East African cooperation remains valid but under-implemented.
He emphasized that stronger integration would unlock trade opportunities, ease movement of goods and people, create jobs, and enhance regional competitiveness.
