Arusha — The East African Legislative Assembly (Eala) wants speeded up removal of trade barriers hampering regional integration.

Newly-elected Speaker Martin Ngoga said in Kampala on Tuesday that non-tarriff barriers (NTBs) in particular were a matter of concern.

"We should continue to address these challenges in order to secure East Africa's future for prosperity," he said when the fourth Assembly began its business.

Mr Ngoga, a Rwandan member who was last month elected as new Speaker for Eala,insisted NTBs in particular should be stamped out quickly in order to enhance free movement of goods, labour and services.

"We need to venture into new areas of integration and consolidate those we have agreed upon," he pointed out.

The Speaker cited problems which have impacted the education sector in the region such as lack of uniform fees as among issues that must be sorted out quickly.

Ugandan President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni reiterated increased productivity and free trade within the bloc when he addressed the Assembly on Tuesday.

He said at a time of reports Uganda was facing a shortage of food, there was a huge stock of five million tonnes of maize capable of sufficiently meeting the current needs.

"We need a situation where all producers in the partner states are able to freely sell their produce," the Uganda leader said in his address, according to a dispatch to The Citizen.

President Museveni also called for the region to effect better use of the existing common natural resources for its own prosperity, citing the ecologically rich Lake Victoria and its vast basin.

"This among other resources should be managed on the East African basis and we have the ability to manage the resources collectively," he pointed out.