The COMESA-EAC Horticultural Accelerator (CEHA), in collaboration with the East African Community (EAC), held a collaborative and transformative Regional Forum on the Market Information System (MIS) and the Regional Food Balance Sheet (RFBS) in ARUSHA, Tanzania, on 20th and 21 August 2025.

The regional Forum aligns with CEHA’s vision of supporting the development and adoption of a regional MIS platform integrated into the Regional Food Balance Sheet (RFBS), a multi-country framework for tracking production, consumption, trade flows, and food security indicators across the region.

Keynote speeches delivered by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Mr. Gerald Mweli, Alliance for Commodity Trade in Eastern and Southern Africa, Chief Executive Officer, Dr John Mukuka, EAC Acting Director, Productive Sectors, Mr Simon Kiarie, Alliance for a Green Revolution Regional Program Officer, Food Trade in East and Southern Africa, Solomon Baregu, Tanzania Horticulture Association, Chief Development Manager, Anthony Chimanga, underscored the following;

  • The relevance of ensuring the availability of accurate, timely, and standardised market data towards unlocking the trade and investment potential of the Horticulture sector in COMESA and EAC regions.
  • Enhancement of MIS and RFBS data systems to accelerate policy coordination, value chain development, including actionable, responsive, and inclusive financing.
  • Advancing regional harmonized and integrated MIS and RFBS that inform policy and decision making.
  • Strengthening strategic partnerships and consensus building on governance, data sharing protocols, technical interoperability, and sustainability models.

The collaborative platform brought together strategic partners, including experts in MIS and RFBS from the Ministries of Agriculture, trade, and the National Bureau of Statistics in the CEHA Target countries of Tanzania, Uganda, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Rwanda. Other Partners included COLEAD and GIZ.

The Regional Forum marks a key step towards realising the COMESA and EAC aspiration of boosting farmer incomes, stabilizing food supply chains, and enhancing regional horticulture food security systems in the COMESA and EAC regions.