We congratulate East Africa heads of state from Burundi, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Rwanda for signing the Common Market protocol for the region. It is crucial that each member state works towards aligning their country policies to the protocol. It is also of strategic importance to prepare and invest in East Africa's 126 million citizens so as to enable them gain value from the new market.  

Harmonizing standards and general licensing procedures will make it easier for investors (both local and foreign) to tap into this market. Harmonizing the education system will address challenges of human resource that currently informs the fears of some member states towards greater integration. Setting standards for political plurality and openness among members will be of added value to ensure that citizens engage in open dialogue about their destiny.   

The leaders have set the pace and the momentum. It is up to individual East African citizens to capture this momentum to ensure that the union brings benefits to them as opposed to just a few elites.