Counties bordering East Africa Community(EAC) Partner States have been advised to harmonize rules and regulations governing trade and movement of person to ensure they operate in tandem with procedure that promote the spirit of East African integration.
Speaking at Imperial Hotel in Kisumu Secretary of Regional Integration Barrack Ndegwa while addressing County Executive Committee,MCAs and County commissions from Kisumu,Migori,HomaBay and Narok said that the legislation assemblies of such border counties to enact laws that mutually relate with EAC treaty and promote cross border trade, movement and interaction.
"Other ways of raising revenue other penalising vehicles that are on transit that bring in import or others which are picking goods from Kenya to the neighbouring countries," said Ndegwa.
Ndegwa said that counties are significant stakeholders in the integration process and that Kenya cannot participate fully in the EAC integration without full support from border.
"We want to share with the counties to make them understand by putting this levy contrading what we have agreed at the regional level on free movement of goods," said Ndegwa. He added,
"The liberalization includes the removal of taxes and removing non tariff barriers.Things like are additional charges which are not inline we have committed the regional level."
He emphasized that for benefits of EAC integration yo trickle down to the ordinary citizens, rules and regulations governing cross border trade,investments and social interaction must be harmonized as a safeguard against any clause that may undermine the integration agenda. He said the forum is typically to avoid conflicts as we implement the agreements on movements of goods and implementation of common market protocol.
"We expect the goods to be moving in their territories we expect workers and people to be moving into their territories," said Ndegwa. He added:
"Because of this we need to be reading from the same page to know what is expected so that they don't work at cross roads with what we have agreed at the regional level.After Kisumu we are having another in Bungoma."