The East African Federation () is a proposed federal sovereign state consisting of the eight member states of the East African Community in the African Great Lakes region—Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda.
The idea of this federation has existed since the early 1960s but has not yet come to fruition for several reasons, though many steps have been taken to advance its establishment. Institutions and governing bodies already exist for the eventual union, with representatives from all of the related nations working towards the common goal. A voluntary confederation will be formed before a full political federation is established.
In September 2018, a committee was formed to begin the process of drafting a regional constitution, and a draft constitution for the confederation was set to be written by the end of 2021, with its implementation by 2023. However, the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted plans to draft and implement the constitution. The drafting resumed in May 2023, with a 20-day consultation with local stakeholders in Kenya.
Features At 5,449,717 km2 (2,104,147 sq mi), the East African Federation (EAF) would be the largest country in Africa and seventh-largest in the world, replacing India. It would span throughout the African continent from the Indian Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 343,328,958 as of 2024, it would also be the most populous nation in Africa and third in the world, surpassed only by China and India.
Swahili has been proposed as an official lingua franca. The proposed capital is Arusha, a city in Tanzania close to the Kenyan border, which is also the current headquarters of the East African Community. Currently, 22% of the population within these territories lives in urban areas.
According to a 2013 published report, the monetary union was slated for 2023. However, due to COVID-19 and the admission of new member states such as the DRC and Somalia, the date for the implementation of the monetary union has been pushed back to 2031. This would involve the creation of an East African Central Bank, called the East African Monetary Institute (EAMI). Currently, the location of EAMI has not yet been decided. The GDP (PPP) estimate would be US$1,027.067 billion, making it the 34th largest in the world and the third largest in Africa, following Nigeria and Egypt. The GDP (PPP) per capita estimate is approximately US$2,991, putting the East African Federation 172nd in the world.
As of 4 December 2024, William Ruto, the President of Kenya, serves as the East African Community's lead Summit Chairperson. Deng Alor Kuol, the Minister for East African Community Affairs in South Sudan, is the current Chairperson of the EAC Council of Ministers. Veronica Nduva is the current Secretary General of the EAC, having been appointed on 7 June 2024 following Kenya's recall of former EAC Secretary-General Peter Mathuki for alleged misallocation of $6 million in funds from the Peace Fund at the Secretariat.
Timeline Background In the 1920s, Colonial Secretary Leo Amery sought to create a white-ruled East African Dominion composed of Kenya, Uganda and Tanganyika. The Permanent Mandates Commission, which oversaw Tanganyika (a mandated territory), opposed Amery's plan. The plan was opposed by nonwhite populations in Africa.
1960s proposal
In the early 1960s, around the time Kenya, Tanganyika, Uganda and Zanzibar were gaining independence from the United Kingdom, the political leaders of the four nations had become interested in forming a federation. Julius Nyerere even offered in 1960 to delay the imminent independence of Tanganyika (due in 1961) in order for all of the East African territories to achieve independence together as a federation.
In June 1963, Kenyan Prime Minister Jomo Kenyatta met with the Tanganyika President Julius Nyerere and Ugandan Prime Minister Milton Obote in Nairobi. The trio discussed the possibility of merging their three nations (plus Zanzibar) into a single East African Federation, declaring that this would be accomplished by the end of the year. Subsequently, discussions on the planning for such a union were initiated.
Privately, Kenyatta was more reluctant regarding the arrangement and as 1964 came around, the federation had not come to pass. In May 1964, Kenyatta rejected a back-benchers resolution calling for speedier federation. He publicly stated that talk of a federation had always been a ruse to hasten the pace of Kenyan independence from the United Kingdom, but Nyerere denied the truth of this statement. Around the same time, Obote came out against an East African Federation, instead supporting pan-African unity, partly because of domestic political pressures with the semi-autonomous kingdom of Buganda's opposition to being in an East African federation as part of Uganda but rather as a unit in its own right. By late 1964, the prospects for a wider East African federation had died, although Tanganyika and Zanzibar did form a union in April 1964, eventually becoming Tanzania.
A variety of reasons have been put forth for the federation's failure. American political scientist Joseph Nye argued a primary reason was the Ugandan government's concerns about the possible subordinate position Uganda might have within the federation, as well as their "ideological objections inspired by Kwame Nkrumah's vision of East African federation as a neo-colonial, balkanising plot and an obstacle to continental unity." Other reasons have included Bugandan concerns over the loss of autonomy in the federation, the uneven distribution of benefits from economic integration, a lack of clarity on the function or form of federation and the absence of popular engagement with the scheme's process.
2010s–2020s proposal
In the early 2010s, a federation of the current East African Community into a single state began to be discussed, with early estimates of the founding of the federation in 2013. In 2010, the EAC launched its own common market within the region, with the goal of a common currency by 2013 and full political federation in 2015.
South Sudan was approved for membership of the EAC in March 2016, and acceded in September 2016. South Sudan acceded as the South Sudanese Civil War occurred.
On 14 October 2013, the leaders of Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda and Burundi began a meeting in Kampala intending to draft a constitution for the East African Federation, but by December 2014, efforts for a full political federation had been pushed back to 2016 or later.
In February 2016, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni described the union as "the number one target that we should aim at". In November 2016, the EAC Council of Ministers agreed to create an East African Confederation before the East African Federation is eventually created.
In September 2018, a committee of regional constitutional experts and drafters was formed to begin the process of drafting a regional constitution. The committee, led by retired Ugandan Chief Justice Benjamin Odoki and deputized by former Kenyan Attorney General Amos Wako, plans on holding consultations in every member state to lead with local stakeholders of the county governments, private sector, civil society, political leaders, clergy, and academia. This was launched with a five-day consultation meeting in Burundi from 14 to 18 January 2020, where it announced that a confederation constitution would be drafted by the end of 2021, with establishment by 2023. This was delayed by the accession of the DRC and the COVID-19 Pandemic. In April 2021, consultations were held in Uganda.
In April 2020, Yoweri Museveni restated his desire for the culmination of the East African Federation in an address to the nation, reinforcing his stance that the East African Federation could provide political and economic benefits for the region.
On 8 April 2022, the DRC officially acceded into the EAC and on 11 July 2022, the DRC officially became a member. Since its accession, the DRC has failed to remit any money, owing US$14.7 million, and has yet to align its legal instruments with the EAC as per the treaty. Additionally, EAC insiders have stated that the DRC rarely takes part in meetings. DRC Foreign Minister Christophe Lutundula stated the DRC joined the EAC "for regional integration and economic reasons, but also to better plead the Congo's security cause, where Rwanda is making its voice heard", referencing the March 23 Movement, a successionist militia operating in the Eastern DRC which has been found by multiple United Nations reports to have been militarily supported by both Uganda and Rwanda. The DRC recalled its ambassador to Kenya in December 2023 due to Kenyan President William Ruto denial of Rwandan involvement in the M23 offensive.
On 9 May 2023, the drafting process resumed with a 20-day consultation with local stakeholders in Kenya. Salva Kiir disclosed on 7 June 2024 that consultations would be held in South Sudan in July 2024 and urged expediting the founding of the confederation. However, according to a 30 November 2024 press release, this consultation has been delayed. Rwanda and Tanzania have set dates for constitutional consultations.
Somalia applied for membership in the EAC in March 2012, and acceded in December 2023. Somalia ratified the agreement on 4 March 2024, thus becoming the eighth member of the EAC. As of 7 June 2024, Somalia is preparing to integrate into both the Customs Union and Common Market. At a summit of the East African Community held in the Somali capital Mogadishu in October 2025, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, President of Somalia, declared that Swahili will be incorporated at all levels of the country's school system. Aiming for further integration into the EAC further stated that "we want to see Swahili become a language of communication, trade and learning - even replacing English during our next conference".
Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta proposed expanding the EAC to include Ethiopia in 2022. Speaking at the opening of the One Stop Border post in Moyale in 2020, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed affirmed his commitment to regional integration saying that the east African people are one people and economic integration is a key goal for the region to achieve so as to unlock its potential. In April 2023, Secretary General Peter Mathuki suggested the EAC should consider admitting Ethiopia following Somalia's accession. On 8 April 2024, Ministry of EAC Arid and Semi-arid Lands and Regional Development Cabinet Secretary Peninah Malonza claimed the EAC and Ethiopia were in the final stages of negotiation for admission into the bloc. This was later contradicted by Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Nebiu Tedla said that Ethiopia had made no request to join the EAC and that "the information is baseless." In addition, Kenyan President William Ruto raised the idea of Comoros joining the EAC while signing an agreement for deeper bilateral cooperation between Kenya and Comoros in July 2023. Comoros and existing member Tanzania have a maritime border.
East African Confederation The East African Confederation is a proposed intermediate step toward the formation of the East African Federation, which is envisioned as a political union of the eight members of the East African Community.
Overview The aim is to deepen economic, political, and social integration, allowing member states to coordinate on matters of governance, defense, and economic policies while maintaining some level of national sovereignty during the transition. Once the confederation is successful and stable, the ultimate goal would be to create the East African Federation, which would function as a fully unified political entity with a shared government, currency, and legal systems.