Arusha. The private sector should now contemplate financing development projects in the East African Community (EAC) bloc as a measure to cut down donor dependency.

EAC Secretary-General Dr Richard Sezibera said in Kampala on Friday that the growing portifolio of the projects under the Community also called for diversifying the organisation’s resource base. “There is a need for the Community to tap into the potential funding from the private sector through the establishment of an EAC Private Sector Fund,” he said when he addressed CEOs from the private sector in Uganda.

The initiative has been made by the Uganda business community and to start with some $20million would be raised to set up the fund expected to boost the participation of the private sector in on-going integration process.

“The idea behind the fund is to see how we can ensure that the private sector plays a bigger role in the integration of the EAC. The fund will be used to address various challenges facing the private sector within the EAC,” the Community boss stated.

Hosted by the East African Business Council (EABC) in collaboration with the Private Sector Foundation Uganda (PSFU), EAC Secretariat and Trade Mark East Africa, the Forum brought together over 150 key business leaders.

Also in attendance were owners and CEOs of private businesses in Uganda who met to dialogue on issues impacting doing business in Uganda and the region as a whole and strategise on the way forward.

Uganda’s minister of State for EAC Affairs, Shem Bageine urged the business community to lay emphasis on sustainable investments for sustainable economic growth, employment creation particularly to the young generation and poverty reduction to create a positive impact on the community.

He called on the private sector to regularly attend and participate in the Sectoral Council meetings and those related to trade, finance, investment, industry, monetary, and other matters, “as this would help you to own and drive the EAC integration process to your benefit sustainably.”

Source: The Citizen

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