EAC Moves to Harmonise Cross-Border Data Flows to Drive Digital Economy
The East African Community (EAC) has taken a major step toward building a trusted and integrated regional digital economy by convening data protection experts in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, to validate a harmonised framework for cross-border data flows.
The five-day workshop, held in late June 2026, brought together experts from EAC Partner States to review a proposed Cross-Border Data Flows Framework aimed at enabling the secure, lawful and accountable movement of data across the region while protecting privacy and supporting digital trade.
Opening the workshop, EAC Deputy Secretary General for Customs, Trade and Monetary Affairs, Annette Ssemuwemba, said cross-border data flows have become essential to regional integration, powering financial services, trade, healthcare, education and digital government services.
“Cross-border data flows are no longer a technical or niche regulatory concern. They are central infrastructure for regional trade, financial services, digital public services and health systems across the East African Community,” she said.
Ssemuwemba noted that everyday activities such as mobile money transactions, online shopping, customs declarations, telemedicine consultations and e-learning all depend on data moving safely across borders.
Despite growing digital connectivity, she said differences in national data protection laws, transfer requirements and enforcement mechanisms continue to create uncertainty for businesses operating across multiple EAC countries. These regulatory differences increase compliance costs, slow innovation and pose significant challenges, particularly for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises seeking to expand across the region.
The proposed framework seeks to establish common standards for cross-border data transfers while respecting national legal systems and safeguarding citizens’ personal information. It also aims to improve cooperation among national regulators, reduce compliance barriers, strengthen trust in digital transactions and support innovation, investment and regional digital trade.
According to the EAC, harmonising data governance is critical to achieving a Single Digital Market where businesses, governments and citizens can access trusted digital services seamlessly across Partner States.
“A fragmented and unpredictable cross-border data regime is, in practical terms, a non-tariff barrier to the Common Market. We cannot build a functioning Single Digital Market while leaving this gap unaddressed,” Ssemuwemba said.
Participants are reviewing recommendations from national consultations conducted across all EAC Partner States and identifying priorities for implementing the framework. Expected outcomes include a validated regional framework, stronger consensus among Partner States and enhanced coordination on data governance.
The harmonised framework is being developed under the Eastern Africa Regional Digital Integration Project (EARDIP), a World Bank-supported initiative that aims to accelerate regional digital integration through trusted digital infrastructure, harmonised policies and integrated digital markets.
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