State works on free movement protocol in COMESA

GOVERNMENT is working on measures for Parliament to ratify the protocol on the elimination of visa requirements and free movement of persons, labour and services in the COMESA region, Immigration Department Director-General Moola Milomo has said.

Mr Milomo told the Daily Nation in an interview that the Immigration Department was in the process of carrying out in-house assessments to present the free movement and elimination of visas protocol for consideration to Cabinet. “The protocol was already signed at regional level, what we are currently working on is to conclude assessments internally, as you might be aware this is a huge step in immigration laws, so there is need for extensive consultations to be undertaken, the protocol will have to be proposed to cabinet and depending on cabinets response it might go to parliament for debate,” he said.

Mr. Milomo said that the Immigration Department was committed to ensuring that the free movement of persons and elimination of visa protocol was ratified.

He said that ratification of the protocol would have positive impact on the economy as it would enhance trade and easy transfer of expert knowledge among countries in the COMESA Region.

Mr. Milomo said that he was keen to see the ratification of the protocol in Zambia but proper and extensive consultations were necessary for sensitive policies such as those involving border security.

“Indeed the elimination of visa protocol is attractive, but we have to carry out the necessary inquiries because border security is very sensitive so decisions have to be made after thorough research with empirical evidence of the positives and negatives” he said.

Mr Milomo said that other countries in the region were similarly carrying out consultations and investigations on the advantages and disadvantages of the Protocol,” he said.