Somalia in the East African Community

This policy brief examines the opportunities and challenges associated with Somalia's admission to the East African Community (EAC) in March 2024. It analyzes the strategic, economic, and security implications for both Somalia and the bloc, highlighting the tension between the political will for integration and the institutional, legal, and security fragilities within Somalia.

• Somalia formally became the eighth member of the East African Community (EAC) on 4 March 2024, following a process that began with an initial application on 20 March 2012.
• Somalia's entry provides the EAC with significant geostrategic advantages, including a 3,300 km coastline that offers maritime access to the Indian Ocean, Gulf of Aden, and Red Sea Corridor, as well as increasing the bloc's total market to approximately 339 million people and a combined GDP of about US$361 billion.
• The EAC is currently facing a financial crisis due to member states failing to pay annual contributions; as of November 2025, the compliance rate for the 20242025 financial year was 36.62%, with total outstanding obligations reaching US$55 million.
• Somalia faces severe internal security challenges that could hinder integration and threaten regional stability, specifically the presence of al-Shabaab, which controls large sections of the country, and historic clan-based conflicts.
• Institutional and legal barriers complicate Somalia's integration, including a lack of essential agencies to coordinate the EAC agenda, a highly dollarised economy where approximately 90% of currency in circulation is US dollars, and a legal system based on Sharia Law which differs from the Common Law systems of most other EAC members.
• Internal governance fragility, specifically the tensions between the central government in Mogadishu and federal states such as Puntland and Jubaland, poses a risk to the coordination of national positions and the implementation of EAC functions.

APA

Minde, N., & Turi, G. (2025). Somalia in the East African Community. Institute for Security Studies. https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/pages/1766043544763-pb-215.pdf

Chicago

Minde, Nicodemus, and Guyo Turi. Somalia in the East African Community. Institute for Security Studies, 2025. https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/pages/1766043544763-pb-215.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Minde |first1=Nicodemus |last2=Turi |first2=Guyo |title=Somalia in the East African Community |publisher=Institute for Security Studies |date=2025 |url=https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/pages/1766043544763-pb-215.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{minde2025somalia, author = {Minde, Nicodemus and Turi, Guyo}, title = {{Somalia in the East African Community}}, institution = {Institute for Security Studies}, year = {2025}, url = {https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/pages/1766043544763-pb-215.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }