MOMBASA – In a significant move toward regional integration, stakeholders at the International East African Kiswahili Commission conference in Mombasa are calling on the East African Community (EAC) Council of Ministers to expedite the ratification of Kiswahili as the official language of the bloc.
According to Kenya News Agency, celebrated globally with over 230 million speakers, is one of the world’s ten most widely spoken languages. This linguistic milestone underscores the language’s vast influence and potential to unify the diverse populations of the EAC. Currently, Kiswahili is recognized as an official language in Tanzania, Kenya, and Uganda, but not in Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, Somalia, and South Sudan. The conference, themed “Kiswahili, Education, and Multilingualism for Peace Achievement,” convened more than 300 Kiswahili professionals ahead of World Kiswahili Day on July 7, as declared by UNESCO during its 41st general conference.
Opening the conference, Aisha Jumwa, Cabinet Secretary for Gender, Culture, Arts, and Heritage, emphasized the critical role Kiswahili plays in societal, cultural, and economic development across the region. She encouraged experts to formulate robust recommendations to persuade EAC ministers to adopt Kiswahili officially, which would enhance its use in various sectors including judiciary, parliament, education, and commerce. Jumwa also proposed that Kiswahili be utilized more broadly within national frameworks, suggesting the introduction of a Kiswahili Day to promote the language’s use in formal and informal settings.
Justice Nestor Kayobera, President of the East African Court of Justice, highlighted a discrepancy in the EAC treaty, which currently acknowledges English as the official language with Kiswahili as a lingua franca. Despite declarations from EAC Heads of State that French and Kiswahili are official languages, the treaty has yet to be amended, affecting the court’s ability to deliver rulings in Kiswahili.
Professor Kimani Njogu, a Kiswahili scholar, advocated for the drafting and enactment of laws in Kiswahili to better serve the majority of the population who use the language in daily communications but face legal proceedings conducted in English. He also called for the standardization of new Kiswahili terminologies in the face of technological advancements, such as Artificial Intelligence, to ensure effective communication across the region.
Dr. Caroline Asiimwe, Executive Secretary of the East African Kiswahili Commission, underscored the conference’s goal to develop strategies that deepen the use of Kiswahili globally. She noted that initiatives are underway to assist new EAC members in adopting Kiswahili, with South Sudan already implementing a Kiswahili program in secondary schools.