A monetary union is crucial for the future prosperity of East Africa for two reasons. The first reason pertains to the role which East African economic integration will play in spurring economic growth and development in this region. The second pertains to how we, as East African countries, relate to the rest of the world.
The need for monetary union can only be understood within the context of regional economic integration more broadly. The current drive towards economic integration in the East African Community began with the implementation of the customs union in 2005.