KAMPALA, Uganda – The Kenya government has allowed Uganda sugar manufacturers to export up to 97,000 tonnes of sugar to Kenya.

This ends a stand-off between the two governments which has marred trade relationships.

According to Uganda’s State Minister for Foreign Affairs Okello Oryem, through negotiations in the Northern Corridor Integration arrangement, Kenya has accepted to import 97,000 tonnes as of February 2015, compared to30,299 tonnes in November 2012 .

“Stories of Kenya blocking entry of Uganda sugar on her territory are now of the past. We have been allowed to increase our export to 97,000 tonnes,” Oryem said while addressing the media about the Northern Corridor Summit in Kampala last week.

Though Uganda has capacity to export more than 150,000 tonnes into the Kenyan market after overcoming the 2011 sugar deficit, Kenya had in 2012 blocked imports citing dubious trade activities and dumping.

It required discussions at a presidential level to reach a compromise on the issue of surplus sugar into the region’s biggest economy.

Uganda’s push for access was also pegged on a need for balance of trade, with Uganda saying Kenya was introducing non-tariff barriers barriers to trade.

Kenya has a number of retail supermarkets in Uganda’s economy such as Uchumi, Turskys and Nakumatt all selling mostly imported products from Kenya.

Uganda has an installed capacity of 19,800 tonnes crushed per day (TCD). The surge in production is due to opening up of new mills and expansion of existing ones. Uganda’s annual sugar consumption stands at 320,000 tonnes, against the over 465,000 tonnes produced. New mills in Jinja, Kamuli, Kafu, Kiryandongo, Luwero and Aliak have all started production. Sugar production is projected to reach 623,700 tonnes this year. Oryem also announced Burundi’s entry into the Northern Corridor Integration Project with South Sudan closely eyeing an entry.

The Project involves improving a more efficient linkage for the landlocked countries of Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi with Kenya’s maritime port of Mombasa and cut the costs of doing business.

It also serves the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Southern Sudan and Northern Tanzania.

Rwanda recently hosted the 9th Northern Corridor Summit in Kigali while Uganda is expected to host the 10th summit in Kampala.

Oryem said the Northern Corridor is a multi-modal corridor, encompassing road, rail, pipeline and inland waterways transport.

The main road network runs from Mombasa Sea Port through Kenya and Uganda to Kigali in Rwanda, Bujumbura in Burundi and to Kisangani in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The road network also links Kenya and Uganda to Juba in South Sudan. The rail network runs from Mombasa Sea Port through Nairobi, Malaba, and Kampala to Kasese in Western Uganda, close to the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo.

A branch line radiates from Nakuru to Kisumu on Lake Victoria, from where rail wagon ferries link the system to Port Bell in Kampala. Another rail branch line runs from Tororo in eastern Uganda to Pakwach in Northern, from where river steamers used to provide links with Nimule in South Sudan.

The oil pipeline runs from Mombasa through Nairobi and Nakuru to Kisumu and Eldoret in western Kenya, from where it will be extended to Kabaale in Hoima, Western Uganda.

Source: East African Business Week

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