Tunisia and Somalia have been admitted to the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) bringing the total number of members to 21. The two countries received admission to the trading bloc at the 20th Summit of the Heads of State and Government held in Lusaka, Zambia.
The trading bloc admitted Somalia as the 20th member while Somalia was admitted as the 21st member after they accomplished the terms and conditions of accession to COMESA’s treaty.
Joining COMESA
Article 4 of COMESA’s treaty allows the trade bloc’s authority to admit a nation “which is an immediate neighbour of a member state” once it accomplishes a set of conditions such as accepting the aims and objectives, accepting to co-operate with the bloc, complying with general undertakings, and accepting its fundamental principles.
Tunisia made its first application for observer status in COMESA in 2005. However, the matter was then not concluded. In February 2016, the country wrote formally to the secretary general asking to join the trade bloc.
Somalia was previously a member of the Preferential Trade Area for Eastern and Southern Africa (PTA) which preceded COMESA. However, it was unable to transit to because it did not have a government after the long civil war.
