The East African Kiswahili Commission (EAKC) is an institution of the East African Community (EAC) responsible for the coordination and promotion of the development and use of Kiswahili in the region and beyond.
The Commission is charged with the responsibility of ensuring the development of Kiswahili as a lingua franca for regional and international interaction for political, economic, social, cultural, educational, scientific and technical development.
The Commission fulfills its mandate through research, teaching, learning and development of Kiswahili through policy formulation, knowledge generation and curricula review and standardization of terminologies.
EAKC is the principal advisory institution of the Community on all matters related to Kiswahili and therefore undertakes the following functions:
Article 137 of EAC Treaty provides for the development and use of Kiswahili as lingua franca of the Community.
The Protocol for the Establishment of EAKC is signed.
The EAC Heads of State establish the Commission during their 5th Extraordinary Meeting.
EAKC starts operations at EAC Secretariat in Arusha.
Headquarters Agreement with United Republic of Tanzania is signed, enabling the EAKC Secretariat to move to Zanzibar.
The EAKC moves to Zanzibar.
EAC Heads of State adopt Kiswahili and French as official languages of the Community