How Congo's EAC Membership Will Alter Trade in East Africa

Congo's entry into the East African Community (EAC) will lead to minor improvements to border crossing bureaucracy and reduced tariffs, though it's unlikely to result in significant short-term economic benefits for the bloc due to economic, political and security constraints. The EAC admitted the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the regional bloc on March 29, increasing the EAC market by 90 million people. Kenyan President Uruhu Kenyatta said on March 29 that adding Congo to the community will boost the common market's annual economic output by 25%. Additionally, the presidents of Uganda and Rwanda remarked that the bloc would now have access to the Atlantic Ocean for the first time through Congo's Matadi and Boma ports....