EAC member-state flags. (Courtesy).

The East African Community Council of Ministers has endorsed the appointment of a South Sudanese to the position of deputy secretary-general in charge of productive service at the regional bloc.

The meeting on July 12, 2022, approved the recruitment of two officials; a Ugandan and a South Sudanese as deputy secretaries-general.

The positions advertised in August last year, are the Deputy Secretary-General for Infrastructure, Productive, Social, and Political Sectors, and the Deputy Secretary-General for Customs, Trade, and Monetary Affairs.

According to The EastAfrican news agency, the position to be filled by a South Sudanese fell vacant last year, when Rwanda’s Christophe Bazivamo’s six-year term came to an end.

The two high-ranking secretariat officials are expected to be formally appointed by the EAC heads of state at a summit planned for mid-2023.

Kenya, Tanzania, and Rwanda were not eligible for the post, as Kenya holds the Secretary-General’s position, the outgoing DSG is from Rwanda, and Steven Mlote, Deputy Secretary-General for Administration and Finance, is Tanzanian.

The successful South Sudan candidate has not been officially named.

Meanwhile, Ugandan Deputy Prime Minister Rebecca Kadaga tweeted the appointment of Annette M. Semuwemba as Deputy Secretary-General in charge of Trade, Customs, and Monetary Affairs, the EastAfrican reports.