The East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) has passed the East African Community Statistics Bureau Bill, 2018, a key step toward creating a regional statistics body to support economic integration and the future East African Monetary Union (EAMU). The Bill was approved on October 8, 2025, after years of delays and amendments requested by the Republic of Burundi.
The Bill establishes the East African Community Statistics Bureau as the central institution for harmonising and disseminating statistical data across all 8 EAC member states: Burundi, DRC, Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda. The Bureau will collect, authenticate, and enforce uniform statistical standards to support evidence-based policy, trade facilitation, and economic planning.
EALA Speaker Joseph Ntakirutimana called the Bill’s passage “a turning point for regional data governance.”
“The establishment of the Statistics Bureau will ensure that East Africa speaks with one statistical voice,” he said. “It will strengthen our capacity to monitor economic convergence and foster transparency across the Community.”
The Bill was first introduced in 2017 and passed in 2018 but stalled after failing to secure full assent from all EAC Heads of State as required by Article 63(2) of the EAC Treaty. During the 22nd Ordinary Summit in 2022, Burundi requested the Bill’s withdrawal to ensure its national procedures were incorporated.
In March 2024, Burundi formally requested an amendment to Clause 12(8), specifying that only the Minister responsible for Statistics may designate a replacement when a board member is unable to attend meetings. Gervais Abayeho, Burundi’s former Minister for East African Community Affairs, said the amendment was necessary to align the Bill with domestic law.
“We fully support the regional goal of harmonizing statistics, but we must ensure that national administrative systems are respected and integrated,” Abayeho said in a statement back in March 2024.
The Council of Ministers endorsed Burundi’s proposal, and the EALA Committee on Communication, Trade and Investment recommended its adoption. Committee chairperson Fatuma Ndangiza said the amendment demonstrates the Community’s commitment to inclusive legislation.
Economists say the Bureau will be crucial for advancing the East African Monetary Union, which requires reliable, standardized data for fiscal and monetary policy coordination. The EAMU Protocol, signed in 2013, sets a 10-year roadmap toward a single currency, including the creation of institutions like the Statistics Bureau and a regional monetary institute.
“Without a unified statistical system, the Monetary Union cannot function effectively,” said an EAC Secretariat economist. “Data integrity is the foundation of fiscal coordination and regional credibility.”
The Bill now awaits assent from the EAC Heads of State Summit, expected in the coming months, before the Statistics Bureau can be operationalized and begin supporting data-driven integration across East Africa.
