Why not have a Go with an East African Limited Company? What Company Law can contribute to the Integration Process in East Africa

Abstract

Despite sharing the same tradition, regulations for Limited Companies vary throughout the East African Community - and continue to part even further. What the Partner States have in common, however, is their proclivity for keeping foreign companies out of their own backyard. While this policy is to some extent understandable regarding Western or Asian companies, it becomes a serious problem for companies from other EAC Partner States: Restrictions and dissimilarities require expensive legal consultation, which makes it unattractive for small- and medium-sized enterprises to expand across borders. Not to mention the fact that basing a community on the foundations of a common market is a noble cause, but worthless if the fundamental freedoms that should come with it are only written on paper. This article suggests a rather radical, but nonetheless promising solution: Why not introduce a new legal entity based on a common legal framework, an East African Limited Company?