The East African Business Council (EABC) is pushing for a review of the EAC protocols to transform the EAC Secretariat from a coordinating body to an enforcement agency, to make the entity more relevant. This is because many resolutions are made at different levels of the community up to the heads of states summit, but only the willing partner states implement them, while those violating the resolutions cannot be forced or penalized. This is evident in the failure by the EAC to fully implement the harmonization of tax policies, as well as the persistence of non-tariff barriers, because countries put national policies before the demands of regional integration. These have also seen outright confrontation between countries with some unilaterally closing their borders to neighbours. This is part of the demands the region’s private sector wants handled by the next Heads of States Summit. John Bosco Rusagara, the EABC Board Director recommended for the institutional review of the functions of the EAC Secretariat via elevating its role from coordination to enforcement by transforming the EAC Secretariat into a Commission. The business leaders also condemned the government in the region for doing little to cut the cost of doing business. “EAC Partner States should fully operationalize the EAC Single Customs Territory and adopt technology to transform our EAC region to be borderless for goods and services! The Partner States should work towards to bringing down East African borders for trade to flourish,” said EABC Chairman Nicholas Nesbitt. Speaking at a dialogue on...

7TH PIDA WEEK: Implement SAATM agreement to lower cost African leaders have been urged to urgently implement the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM) agreement, in order to lower the costs of air transport in Africa and in turn boost development. Speaking in Nairobi, Kenya, at the 7th Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA) week, EAC Secretary General Dr Peter Mathuki stated that air cargo currently accounts for only 2% of the global air cargo adding that air transport remains out of reach for both passenger and cargo haulage due to high associated costs. “These costs can be brought down if we have political commitment to implement the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM) agreement,” he noted. The Secretary-General noted that the region continues to ramp up investments in infrastructure to narrow the infrastructure gap and enhance intermodal connectivity. “These investments have yielded impressive results; for instance, the transit time from Mombasa to Kampala has improved from 20 days in 2010 to an average of 6 days in 2021, with a resultant cost reduction from US$3,500 in 2010 to US$2,200 in 2021,” he noted. The Secretary-General hailed African leaders for prioritizing investment in One-Stop Border Posts (OSBPs), which have facilitated transboundary trade by enhancing border crossing efficiency. “The use of technology at OSBPs has improved sharing and exchange of information among agencies, enhanced border security, reduced processing times at the border transit times for traders and transporters, and enhanced the reliability of the supply chain through streamlined and harmonised...

LAPSSET key in Africa’s Integration Agenda The Lamu Port-South Sudan-Ethiopia-Transport (LAPSSET) Corridor Program and free trade agreements have immensely contributed to the African integration agenda by bringing opportunities closer and reducing regional tensions. The remark was made by Silvester Kasuku, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), of the African Center for Transport, Infrastructure and Regional Integration (ACTIRI) and former CEO of LAPSSET Authority, in Nairobi on Tuesday during the sideline of the 7th Program for Infrastructure Development in Africa, (PIDA) Week under the theme "The investment potentials of the LAPSSET Land Bridge to Central Africa and beyond. The LAPSSET Corridor Program is a regional flagship project intended to provide transport and logistics infrastructure aimed at creating seamless connectivity between the Eastern African Countries of Kenya, Ethiopia and South Sudan. The project connects a population of 160 million people in the three countries and is part of the larger land bridge that will connect the East African coast from Lamu Port to the West coast of Africa at Douala Port. According to Kasuku infrastructure projects like the LAPSSET corridor project which is Eastern Africa’s largest and most ambitious infrastructure project is key not only for Kenya, but the whole region as a whole. He added that the project forges linkages that strengthen East Africa’s regional integration thus creating the new basis needed for economic growth. While emphasising the project’s unique importance, he said the road has improved connectedness between Kenya, Ethiopia and South Sudan thus generating positive economic synergy between the three...

The Government of Kenya has lifted the mandatory presentation of negative Covid-19 results requirement for its heavy goods truck drivers and appealed to the EAC partner states to follow suit. The resolution was communicated by Kenya Transport Association to its members after the Kenyan cabinet meeting on Friday, a development which was warmly welcomed by East African transport companies and drivers. “To the EAC secretariat, the ministers of health- Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, DRC, South Sudan and Tanzania, we thank the government of Kenya for removing the mandatory requirement of negative Covid-19 test results for fully vaccinated truck drivers entering Kenya,” reads part of the statement by KTA to its members. According to KTA, the government of Kenya has given its reasons for removing this requirement and believes that the basic parameters observed in Kenya in relation to the current Covid-19 pandemic situation are being replicated in the East African community region. Mr Newton Wang’oo’, the chairman of the transport association of Kenya welcomed the lift pointing out that the EAC governments have always worked with harmonised Covid-19 protocols to facilitate uniform requirements when drivers cross the borders to deliver essential goods in the region. “We therefore, respectively ask the EAC countries to vacate the mandatory requirement to present a negative Covid-19 test result for all fully vaccinated truck drivers crossing all borders in the EAC region,” he said Reports indicate that a total of 42,344 trucks crossed into Uganda from Kenya and 37, 769 trucks crossed into Kenya from Uganda...

AFRICA Country Business Index (ACBI) has called on African countries to ratify and sign important agreements to promote trade and investment in the continent. According to ACBI recommendations from the study conducted in seven African countries show that they performed better in awareness and use of free trade areas followed by a commercial environment. This was revealed on Tuesday in Arusha by the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and ACBI report that surveyed businesses in Angola, Cote d'Ivoire, Gabon, Kenya, Namibia, Nigeria and South Africa. Some of the agreements that African countries were advised to ratify are namely African Aviation Market, People's Free Movement protocols, Copyright and Electronic Trade. Speaking at the Webinar on Primer for the AfCFTA Country Business Index report that was organized by Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), the Executive Director, East African Business Council (EABC) Mr John Kalisa said, there is a need for flexible and clear predictable rules of origin for business to benefit from AfCFTA. He also elaborated that the Rules of Origin consists of three broad dimensions as the first is the Good Restrictiveness and Costs, AfCFTA Knowledge and Commercial Environment in particular domestic environment related to services and other new generation issues under negotiation in the AfCFTA. Mr Kalisa further explained that intra-regional trade is sliding back below 20 per cent due to persistent tariff and Non-Tariff Barriers imposed on both large and micro small medium enterprises. He also recommended the sensitization campaigns on the AfCFTA, harmonization of standards and sanitary...

In Summary KRA reported that it had raised over 1 trillion shillings in the first seven months. This is 28.8 per cent above the revenue collected by KRA within the same 7-month period in the last financial year. Last month, the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) reported that it had raised over 1 trillion shillings in the first seven months of the 2021/2022 Financial year. The results showed that KRA is continuing with its impressive post-COVID recovery strategy as it remains on course towards surpassing its revenue target for the Financial year with five months to go. This is 28.8 per cent above the revenue collected by KRA within the same 7-month period in the last financial year. The January revenue alone increased by 28.3 per cent from 142.8 billion shillings compared to 111.3 billion shillings in the same period last financial year. This is an indication that this year’s revenue could increase at a higher rate in a very long time. One of the areas of its operations credited with the improved revenue collection is the use of enhanced technology in Customs operations, especially cargo scanning. This has strengthened multi-agency collaborations to deter smuggling at the border points leading not only to improved revenue collection but also tighter border security. KRA, working alongside other border agencies including the Immigration Department, Port Health Services, Border Police Patrol Unit, Kenya Bureau of Standards and Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Service, now boast of better inter-agency collaborations. They also enjoy seamless operations, faster clearance...

Ghana has several opportunities for investors including abundant raw materials including gold, cocoa, and oil/gas It however faces several challenges that hinder foreign direct investment, among them costly and difficult financial services and lack of government transparency Low-cost labour, a national airline with well over 100 passenger connections and growing consumer markets are key elements attracting foreign investment into Ethiopia Companies often face long lead-times importing goods and dispatching exports due to logistical bottlenecks, corruption, high land-transportation costs, and bureaucratic delays Ghana remains a favourable investment destination in Africa in 2022, despite the impact of the challenges the economy faces including the COVID-19 pandemic. Data by the US Department of State indicates that the economy has continued to rebound from the negative impact of the virus, and has made attracting foreign direct investment a priority. The economy has expanded at an average of 7 per cent since 2017 to 2020, but reduced progress amid the pandemic to only register 0.9 per cent. In 2021, the IMF said the country’s growth would rebound to 4.6 per cent in 2021 from the shocks of COVID-19, as a result of improved port activity, construction, imports, manufacturing, and credit to the private sector. “In general, Ghana’s investment prospects remain favorable, as the Government seeks to diversify and industrialize through agro-processing, mining, and manufacturing,” the Department said. Pros of doing business in Ghana  According to available data, Ghana has several opportunities for investors. These include abundant raw materials including gold, cocoa, and oil/gas. The country...

Opinion piece by Abebe Haile-Gabriel Assistant Director-General and Regional Representative for Africa Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations March 8 is marked around the world as International Women’s Day. For many women in Africa, including those in the agriculture sector, it will be just another day where invisible barriers hold them back from their true potential. At the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, we believe that inclusivity and fairness are key to achieving sustainable development in agriculture, and that this objective cannot be obtained without accounting for the central role played by women in the sector, including in agriculture markets, trade and value-chain development. The African Continental Free Trade Area or AfCFTA is a major opportunity to boost economic growth, reduce poverty, and broaden economic inclusion. We must seize this opportunity for gender equality as well. The agricultural and agribusiness market in Africa is undergoing rapid expansion, with its value estimated to reach USD 1 trillion by 2030, according to the World Bank. This represents an immense potential for Africa to boost food and non-food trade within the continent and enhance food security and resilience for all. The AfCFTA has opened up immense new market and trading opportunities to capitalize on this potential. The agreement, signed by 54 African Union member states and covering a market of 1.2 billion consumers, establishes the largest free-trade area in the world since the creation of the World Trade Organization almost 30 years ago. The agreement creates a regional single market...

Summary Amani Abou-Zeid, the commissioner for Infrastructure and Energy at the African Union Commission, has urged countries to embrace transnational projects to facilitate the movement of cargo, noting that no meaningful development can take place without significant investment in infrastructure. The African Union High Representative for Infrastructure Development Raila Odinga noted that while countries have increased budgetary allocations to infrastructure projects, funding from private and institutional investors was missing to bridge the continent’s infrastructure deficit. Lack of infrastructure is a bigger hurdle to trade within Africa than uncertain non-tariff barriers, eating up close to 40 percent of logistics expenses and affecting free movement of goods, officials have warned. Amani Abou-Zeid, the commissioner for Infrastructure and Energy at the African Union Commission, has urged countries to embrace transnational projects to facilitate the movement of cargo, noting that no meaningful development can take place without significant investment in infrastructure. “We need to invest in infrastructure to boost our intra-trade on the continent. This can only be achieved by increasing budgetary allocation toward infrastructure projects,” said Ms Zeid in a speech during the official launch of the Programme For Infrastructure Development in Africa (Pida) Week in Nairobi, organised by the African Union Development Agency (Auda)-Nepad. The African Union High Representative for Infrastructure Development Raila Odinga noted that while countries have increased budgetary allocations to infrastructure projects, funding from private and institutional investors was missing to bridge the continent’s infrastructure deficit. Mr Odinga said Covid-19 had also negatively impacted cross-border trade as AU members...

Summary Waiting times at the border stations are commonly used as an indicator of trade facilitation performance. All registered products require a local certificate of conformity to be permitted into the country. Kebs shall register products based on test reports from laboratories accredited to ISO/IEC 17025, product certification by the National Standards Body and/or under IECEE scheme. The import, export and transit of goods and the means of transporting them are subjected to national and international regulations. Compliance with these regulations is checked and enforced when the goods arrive in the country of transit or destination. In most countries, this is at the border crossings or stations close to the geographical boundary of the country. Unfortunately, traders, their representatives and drivers in most cases are forced to undertake multiple formalities at border crossings to release and clear the goods. At times this becomes a lengthy or speedy process depending on the organisation of the border crossings, the procedures in place and management of those formalities. As a result, delays have become common, with pictures of endless lines of waiting trucks depicting trade barriers, particularly in developing countries in Africa. Waiting times at the border stations are commonly used as an indicator of trade facilitation performance. However, the delays and incalculable timelines harm transit traffic and cross border trade. They cause unpredictable delivery times for traders and make it difficult for them to participate in a time-sensitive logistics chain of business with the producer and cargo owner. Uncertain timelines also increase...