Role Of Social Media In Enhancing Regional Cooperation: Case Study Of The East African Community

Abstract

The decision to write a research project on the effect of social media on integration was based on the view that there is plenty of technological change in the global, political and development arena, in the nature of member states towards developmental growth and in debates around the social responsibility model theory. This dissertation covers the east African region and in particular the East African Community. This study aims to contribute to the full understanding and interaction that exists between social media and traditional media and how it ascribes to social cohesion within the member states of the EAC. This work shows how the EAC works and more so the communication department and how they integrate social media in their form of communication. The impact and importance of social media in East Africa and more so the institution is not so fully understood within the region. Social media is infamously linked to rise of political tensions, and this leads to the questioning of whether what is imported such as internet-based technologies are relevant in the integration within the region. Social media and related technologies are penetrating the modern world. The speed through which technology is increasing is quite rapid and its insertion in the environment may have some side effects. It is quite common during a live social function for a person to access their social platforms access a live phone call or send a message. However this bridge communities within the region closer. The rapid enhancement and implementation of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT’s) has brought about a new global word order referred to as the ‘digital world’, introducing new concepts such as e-commerce, e-learning, e-citizen, e-administration among many others. This research project will understand how social media is emerging as a new trend among all pillars of the region and more so how technologies are affecting the region