Building the Capacity and Raising Awareness among COMESA Member States on the Free Movement Protocol

The objective of this project is to support the Common Market for East and Southern Africa (COMESA) to move towards the signature and ratification of the Protocol on the Free Movement of Persons, Labour Services, Right of Establishment and Residence (the Free Movement Protocol).

As stipulated in the COMESA Free Movement Protocol, “a genuine Common Market shall be achieved only when the citizens of Member States can move freely within the Common Market.” However, little progress has been made on its signature and ratification and only four of COMESA’s 19 Member States have signed the Free Movement Protocol.

This project will assist the COMESA Secretariat and Member States to move towards greater signature and ratification of the Free Movement Protocol. This will be achieved through a pilot initiative focusing on Zambia and Zimbabwe that will concentrate on promoting enhanced coordination within the COMESA Secretariat, and delivery of capacity building for Member States, in particular National Focal Points and National Monitoring Committees. The project will also contribute to increased awareness on the Protocols (both the Free Movement Protocol and the Protocol on the Gradual Relaxation and Eventual Elimination of Visas) through the development of an awareness raising strategy and the dissemination of awareness raising tools to key stakeholders.

The project results will be complemented by an associated initiative that is currently being undertaken by the African, Caribbean and Pacific - European Union Dialogue on Migration and Development, which includes the provision of Technical Assistance to COMESA and its Member States for the Protocol on the Gradual Relaxation and Eventual Elimination of Visas.