Ugandan lawyer challenges Tanzania’s new law barring E.Africans from certain businesses

Lawyer Steven Kalali addressing the media

A Ugandan lawyer, Steven Kalali, has petitioned the East African Court of Justice (EACJ) over a new Tanzanian law that restricts non-citizens, including East African Community (EAC) nationals, from engaging in specific business activities.

Kalali filed the petition before the EACJ First Instance Division in Arusha, through the Kampala sub-registry, challenging the Business Licensing (Prohibition of Business Activities for Non-Citizens) Order, 2025.

He argues that the law violates the EAC Treaty and the Protocol on the Establishment of the EAC Common Market, which guarantees the free movement of labour, services, and investments across member states.

The statutory order, issued on July 28, 2025, by Tanzania’s minister of Trade, Selemani Saidi Jafo, criminalises EAC nationals’ participation in a range of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

The restricted activities include retail trade outside supermarkets and specialised outlets, mobile money services, phone and electronics repairs, salon and hairdressing services (except for tourists), small-scale mining, tour guiding and cleaning services, operation of museum shops, curio businesses, and micro industries.

Violators face penalties of up to TShs 10 million (approx UGX 14 million) or six months in prison. Kalali’s Petition Through M/s Neon Advocates, Kalali argues that the order discriminates against EAC citizens, creating illegal non-tariff barriers.

It contradicts key provisions of the EAC Treaty and Common Market Protocol, including Articles 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 13, 16, 24, and 29. It undermines regional integration, criminalising lawful cross-border economic activity.

In a sworn affidavit, Kalali identifies himself as a staunch advocate for regional integration and warns that this law sets a dangerous precedent, potentially encouraging other partner states to enact exclusionary policies.

Kalali says his petition seeks to protect the rights of East African citizens to freely work and trade across our borders without being criminalised in another jurisdiction.

He further notes that the punitive nature of the law, especially its criminal sanctions, offends the principle of free movement and fair treatment under EAC law. Kalali is asking the EACJ to nullify the Tanzanian order as inconsistent with the EAC Treaty and Common Market Protocol, declare Section 3 void, as it unlawfully restricts EAC citizens’ rights to trade and work, and permanently restrain Tanzania from enforcing or relying on the order against other EAC citizens.

Kalali stresses that the petition is filed in the public interest, as thousands of East Africans rely on cross-border businesses for their livelihoods. The Attorney General of Tanzania has 45 days to respond before the court schedules a hearing