DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania – The East African Community (EAC) has begun a high-level, week-long regional meeting in Tanzania’s commercial capital to advance a modernized harmonized mobile roaming framework. The initiative aims to significantly reduce cross-border mobile and data communication costs, address longstanding regulatory gaps, and accelerate the bloc’s Single Digital Market agenda.
The meeting, running from May 25 to 29, 2026, convenes under the EAC’s Technical Committee on Telecommunications. It brings together telecom experts, policymakers, heads of national communications regulators, and representatives from regional institutions. Discussions focus on overhauling outdated roaming structures that have kept cross-border charges high despite earlier efforts.
EAC Deputy Secretary General for Infrastructure, Productive, Social, and Political Sectors Andrea Ariik Malueth (also referred to as Ariik Malueth) emphasized the importance of the initiative. He stated that “affordable and seamless communication across borders is essential for deepening regional integration, supporting trade, and enabling East Africans to fully participate in the digital economy.”
The current challenges stem from inconsistent commercial and regulatory practices across partner states, high interconnection and transit costs, varying tax regimes, risks of cross-border fraud, and low consumer awareness of existing roaming discounts. The 2014 EAC roaming framework and the related One Network Area (ONA) initiative successfully lowered voice call tariffs in participating countries. However, implementation has been uneven, and the framework is now considered outdated—primarily addressing voice services while largely overlooking mobile data, which is critical for today’s digital economy including e-commerce, digital payments, and logistics.
Delegates are reviewing a comprehensive regional study funded by the World Bank under the Eastern African Regional Digital Integration Project. This study offers technical and legal recommendations for a modern digital ecosystem. The draft framework under discussion proposes measures such as:
- Strict cost-based tariffs for roaming services.
- Strengthened consumer protection mechanisms.
- Harmonized regulatory enforcement across member states.
- Standardized quality of service to prevent drops in data speeds when users cross borders.
Tanzania’s Principal ICT Officer Philemon Machaine welcomed participants and highlighted that successful outcomes would “contribute significantly towards reducing the cost of telecommunications services and improving communication across the region.” George Lwevoola, Chairperson of the meeting and Principal Regional Integration Officer at Uganda’s Ministry of EAC Affairs, noted that lessons from over a decade of joint initiatives since discussions began in 2013 would help shape a sustainable framework.
The gathering also involves collaboration with bodies including the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), the Smart Africa Alliance, and the East African Communications Organisation (EACO). Over the week, regulators will validate the World Bank study, refine the draft framework, and prepare a policy roadmap for submission to the EAC Sectoral Council on Transport, Communications and Meteorology for formal adoption.
If ratified, the new framework would advance a key pillar of the EAC Common Market Protocol, helping transform East Africa into a more integrated, digitally connected marketplace. The EAC comprises eight member states: Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda.
This latest push addresses persistent issues faced by traders, transporters, tourists, and students who encounter high and unpredictable roaming bills when moving across borders, with particular emphasis on enabling affordable data services essential for regional economic growth.
