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East Africa to launch regional e-passports in March

Xinhua, February 17, 2016 Adjust font size:

East African citizens will from March this year be able to access the East African Community (EAC) e-passports that will help ease their movement in the trading bloc, a senior official said on Tuesday.

EAC's senior official in-charge of communication unit Owora Richard Othieno disclosed this here when speaking ahead the 17th Ordinary EAC Heads of State Summit set for February 29 in Tanzania's safari capital of Arusha.

He said that among other things scheduled for the day, regional leaders will launch international EAC e-passport.

The long-awaited New Generation e-East African Passport will be a major milestone towards achieving a harmonization in the region.

The e-passport was scheduled for launch in November last year but was postponed to allow more time to airbrush pending issues on the travel document.

The Summit is also expected to deliberate on a report on the verification exercise for the admission of the Republic of Somalia into the EAC.

The Summit will be preceded by a meeting of the EAC Council of Ministers that will take place at the EAC Headquarters in Arusha on Feb. 22-27.

The EAC trading bloc includes Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Kenya and Tanzania. Endit