Democracy, Rule Of Law And Political Accountability
Article 6 of the treaty establishing the East African Community provides that the fundamental principles that shall govern the achievement of the objectives of the Community by the Partner States shall include, inter alia, good governance including adherence to the principles of democracy, the rule of law, accountability, transparency, social justice, equal opportunities, gender equality, as well as the recognition, promotion and protection of human rights.
While the EAC countries have made progress in enshrining some of these norms and principles in their national constitutional and legal frameworks, there is currently no systematic process for tracking and monitoring progress on how the Partner States are meeting these obligations.
The GLISS program on Democracy and Rule of Law focuses on developing or adapting democracy and the rule of law assessment tools and publishing regular score cards. Additionally, the program pays particular attention on how the key institutions in the region such as the legislative assembly, the Council of Ministers or the East African Court of Justice are working towards the implementation of these commitments.