Irregular Migration Governance in the East African Community: Assessing the Legal and Institutional Response

Abstract

Governance of irregular migration has recently occupied the agenda of most Regional Economic Communities. The agenda is being sparked by the existing intersection between irregular migration and national security of partner states as well as its implications for the economy and development broadly. These initiatives also find justification in the fact that migration governance is increasingly cross-cutting and requires cooperation between States and regions. One of the major tools used to achieve regional cooperation in migration governance is the adoption of coherent policies and measures. This article surveys the East African Community (EAC)’s legal and institutional frameworks designed to address irregular migration in the region with a view to depicting the existing gaps and their implications to irregular migration governance. To achieve this objective, desk research and key informant interviews were the resorted methodologies. The article finds that, the key challenges facing irregular migration governance in the EAC are incomprehensive frameworks, implementation challenges, contradicting provisions in the EAC laws, incoherent institutional framework and security challenges. It is recommended that the identified challenges should be addressed through incorporation in the legislative and institutional framework. Keywords: East African Community, Legal Framework, Migration, Regional Integration.