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The upcoming East Africa Business Council (EABC) Summit is set to be held in Uganda from August 31 to September 1, 2023. Over 500 participants from the East African Community (EAC) and the entire African continent will attend the summit to address trade opportunities and challenges in the private sector.

The East Africa Business Council (EABC) Summit is scheduled to take place in Uganda from August 31 to September 1 of 2023 at the opulent Speke Resort Hotel Munyonyo in Kampala.

The revelation was made by the EABC Chief Executive Officer, John Kaliisa, during a press conference held at the Ministry of East Africa Community Affairs in Kampala on Tuesday July 25th. Kaliisa was joined by the state minister for East Africa Community Affairs, James Magode Ikuya, and the EAC business community, among others.

“Over 500 participants are expected to attend the Summit drawn from the EAC block and the entire African Continent to discuss various trade opportunities and challenges facing the private sector”, said Kaliisa. He said among the challenges to be addressed at the summit include non-tariff trade barriers still existing among EAC member states and harmonization of the tax regimes among others.

He said that the COVID 19 Pandemic had a negative influence on regional trade, causing the EAC to lose 13% of its revenue from cross-border trade, but he also claimed that the issue has been resolved through joint venture partnerships among the EAC member states.

“In the EAC block, over 257 non-tariff barriers have been removed, but more must be done to address the remaining barriers,” he continued.

Uganda stands to gain from the EABC summit, according to Minister Ikuya, as Ugandan business people will have the opportunity to network with representatives from the EAC bloc and the entire continent. According to him, Uganda has plenty of agricultural and pastoral products to sell both inside the EAC region and outside of it.

“Currently Uganda is venturing into exporting milk to West African Countries, such as Ghana and Nigeria”, he said.

Agaba Moses, the CEO of the FPRO business company and one of the organizers, emphasized some of the issues that need to be addressed, such as political tensions, rioting, and insecurity among several EAC member nations.

According to the summit’s organizers, the outcomes of the resolutions will be shared with the EAC Heads of State Summit.