Mutoni is sited at a local sports bar in Arusha, Tanzania. Enjoying her glass of wine. It’s a lazy Saturday afternoon. Arsenal is playing Manchester United later in the evening. That’s when her friends will join her to watch the game and may be go out dancing later in the night. Sited across her, two tables away is a nice looking gentleman. He looks very cultured. She can smell his cologne from her table. She can’t really place the scent. But she feels like it’s discreetly beckoning at her.
She can’t help stealing glances of him. She even manages to take his picture discreetly and sends it to her best friend Charlene. Thank God for WhatsApp! Charlene is from Kenya and the two have known each other since their High school days at a Boarding school in Uganda. Both them are now colleagues at the East African Community secretariat.
Hamisi has long finished his drink and he is ready to join his friends at the country club when a very pretty girl struts into the sport bar. She has legs from London to Texas and there is something very mysterious about her eyes. All the heads turn to look at her. But she seems oblivious to the open stares. Hamisi exchanges a look with the bar man. Before he know it, he has ordered a drink. There is no way he is leaving the bar without the lady’s number. He decides to down 4 doubles of Jack Daniels for courage.30 minutes later he walks to her table.
“Mambo Dada” (Hi lady) He starts. “Aisee unapendeza sana” (You are so pretty!).
“Poa”. (I am good) Mutoni answers. She has a wide smile on her face. This is God sent! She is itching to WhatsApp Charlene about it.
“Naomba nikununulie kinywaji” (May I buy you a drink?) He feels encouraged by her warm response.
Mutoni continues to smile. Unfortunately, her understanding of Swahili does not go beyond the greetings.
The gentleman is confused. Why isn’t she responding? He decides to ask again. But this time round he introduces himself first. “Dada, jina langu ni Hamisi.Naomba nikununulia kinywaji chochote unachotaka.”(Lady, my name is Hamisi. May I buy you a drink? Whatever you want.
Mutoni. “I am sorry, I don’t understand what you are saying. Do you speak English?”
Oh no! Though he understands what she has just asked him, Hamisi cannot express himself in English. You see, being a Tanzanian where Swahili is the commonly spoken Language, Hamisi has had very little use for English, which he last used in High school. Worst still, he has no college Education. He studied up to O-Level and soon after went into family business.
Mutoni is equally confused. She decides to try French. “Tu Parle Francais?”
“Excuse me” Hamisi Exits. He is too embarrassed to keep up with that conversation. How does he even ask for her number if they don’t speak any common language?
Mutoni whatsapps Charlene. As she watches Hamisi drive away in his Sleek Mercedes Benz. What to do? It’s not her fault that she is from Rwanda and only fluent in French and English. May be she should have tried Kinyarwanda too. She chuckles but deep down she is so disappointed. She really needs to get serious with her Swahili classes.
Later in the Evening, Florida and her friends are in the sports club for a girl’s night out. Now, Florida is the kind of girl who doesn’t believe in sitting down when a club is playing good music. She can dance for six straight hours without any apology.
Evariste and his boys are also in the same club for a game of pool. He sports Florida whose moves seem different from the rest of the girls in the club. She really knows her music this one. An avid dancer himself, he wonders if Florida will allow him a dance. His boys encourage him to make a move. He walks slows to her table, hoping that Florida is not one of this very rude girls that enjoy embarrassing a man in front of everyone.
“Mambo dada, Naomba kudansi na wewe” (Hi lady, may I dance with you?)
“Okay” answers Florida.
The two of them bring the bar to a stop. They have undeniable chemistry on the dance floor. Everyone is cheering and the two do not disappoint. Three songs down the line, Florida asks to step outside for some air. Evariste follows her excitedly.
“So, are you from here” Florida asks.
Silence. Followed by a smile from Evariste.
Is that a Tanzania thing? She wonders. But decides to try again. “Are you from here in Tanzania?”
Same reaction. But they spoke before! So he can’t be deaf.
“Jana langu ni Evariste” (My name is Evariste).
“Jina langu ni Florida” (My name is Florida).
“Hivi wewe unatokezea wapi?” (Where are you from?). Continues Evariste.
“Sorry, I don’t speak Swahili. I am from Uganda”
Evariste doesn’t know what to say. He doesn’t speak English either. He is from Burundi. And very fluent in Swahili and French.
The two scenarios above are a real example of what is happening to East Africans every day. As we move towards integration we continue to face the challenge of the harmonization of the regional languages of doing business. If you relate the above scenes to the business world, you can just imagine the number of people who might be missing out on business opportunities in other East African Countries due to the language barrier? How do we ensure that these individuals are not left behind?
Art. 137 of The Treaty for the Establishment of East African Community recognises English as the official language for the East African community (1) and Swahili as the EAC Lingua Franca, with future prospects for its development (2).
In Uganda, English is the official language. Although the parliament voted for Swahili to be included as the second language, the policy is yet to be constitutionalised. In Kenya, English and Swahili are the official languages. In Tanzania, which is the most multi-lingual East African Country, English and Swahili are the official languages. Swahili is used in the parliament, lower courts and as a language of instruction in Primary schools, while English is used in foreign trade, Diplomacy, Higher Courts and as a language of instruction in Secondary schools and tertiary institutions. The Tanzanian government plans to ultimately drop English as an official language of instruction in schools.
In Burundi, Kirundi and French are the official languages. Swahili though not official is also spoken here. There is also a law in pipeline towards the adoption of English, French and Kirundi as the official languages in Burundi. In Rwanda, Kinyarwanda, French and English are the official languages. Swahili is also spoken by a number of people. In summary, English is a common official language in Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and soon Burundi while Swahili is official in Tanzania and Kenya. French in Official in Rwanda and Burundi.
Moving forward, and in order to optimise on the benefits of the East African Community Integration, the partner states need to adopt assertive language policies that will enable their citizens to do business across the five countries. While some individuals might be advantaged enough to pay for extra language classes, others, especially those at the grassroots may require concerted effort from the policymakers in ensuring that they acquire the right linguistic tools required for doing business across the East African region. The harmonization of regional official languages will enable citizens across the community to reap the full benefits of the economic, social and political integration without serious cases of linguistic marginalization.
Alil-birrofmymind 
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