With the United States and China locked in a trade war, climate action lagging behind climate reality, and the World Trade Organisation’s Appellate Body at risk of becoming inoperable, the theme of this week’s WTO public forum — “Trading Forward: Adapting to a Changing World” — couldn’t be more appropriate. But if the global trading system is to be adapted to twenty-first-century realities, careful attention must be paid to the needs of developing countries. Consider Africa, which has been working hard lately to deepen intra-continental trade and integration. While such efforts — most notably the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), have the potential to spur growth and development, their impact depends both on complementary global reforms and on countries’ implementation of WTO agreements. Success is far from guaranteed. The Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA), which entered into force in 2017, is a case in point. One of the few WTO agreements to be ratified in recent years, the TFA places developing members’ ambitions at the forefront. It aims to expedite the movement, clearance and release of goods across borders; establishes measures for effective cooperation between customs and other relevant authorities; and provides for technical assistance and capacity building. The TFA recognises that trade facilitation rests on three key pillars: Simplification, harmonisation and transparency. Given its global uptake, it has the potential to ensure that reforms reflecting this recognition are “locked in” across countries, including those whose governments might otherwise be reluctant to implement them. For African countries that manage to implement the TFA...

With the United States and China locked in a trade war, climate action lagging behind climate reality, and the World Trade Organisation’s Appellate Body at risk of becoming inoperable, the theme of this week’s WTO public forum — “Trading Forward: Adapting to a Changing World” — couldn’t be more appropriate. But if the global trading system is to be adapted to twenty-first-century realities, careful attention must be paid to the needs of developing countries. Consider Africa, which has been working hard lately to deepen intra-continental trade and integration. While such efforts — most notably the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), have the potential to spur growth and development, their impact depends both on complementary global reforms and on countries’ implementation of WTO agreements. Success is far from guaranteed. The Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA), which entered into force in 2017, is a case in point. One of the few WTO agreements to be ratified in recent years, the TFA places developing members’ ambitions at the forefront. It aims to expedite the movement, clearance and release of goods across borders; establishes measures for effective cooperation between customs and other relevant authorities; and provides for technical assistance and capacity building. The TFA recognises that trade facilitation rests on three key pillars: Simplification, harmonisation and transparency. Given its global uptake, it has the potential to ensure that reforms reflecting this recognition are “locked in” across countries, including those whose governments might otherwise be reluctant to implement them. For African countries that manage to implement the TFA...

The establishment of fully serviced industrial parks with plug and play facilities to attract investments is one of the proposed actions to gain quick wins in the promotion of the Cotton, Textiles and Apparels (CTA) Manufacturing Industries in East Africa. The first forum of owners CTA manufacturing industries held in Kigali, Rwanda days ago further proposed sustainable procurement of all institutional uniforms, beddings, draperies by state institutions from textiles and fabric industries in the region. Another resolution of the forum was to carry out campaigns on Buy East Africa, Wear East Africa including implementation of the declaration of Fridays as “Afrika Mashariki Fashion Day” and organizing the Annual “Afrika Mashariki Fashion Week” exhibition to precede the EAC Heads of States Summit Meetings normally held on November 30, every year. Themed, ‘Promoting Local Production and Consumption  of Cotton, Textile and Apparels (CTA) Made in the EAC Region’, the two-day forum was attended by participants from the ministries responsible for industry, trade, agriculture and EAC; private sector players, CTA industry associations, private sector associations, industry associations and development partners, among other stakeholders. The overall objective of the Forum was to ensure that the owners of CTA industries meet discuss pertinent issues within the sector and make useful and practical recommendations to the EAC Policy Organs especially the Heads of State Summit for purposes of promoting the sector. Opening the Forum, Rwanda’s Permanent Secretary of Trade and Industry, Michel Minega Sebera, noted that CTA has the potential to create employment, improve economic well-being and widen...

ESTABLISHMENT of fully serviced industrial parks with plug and production facilities to attract investments is one of the proposed actions to gain quick wins in the promotion of the cotton, textiles and apparels (CTA) manufacturing industries in East Africa. The 1st forum of owners of cotton, textiles and apparels (CTA) manufacturing industries was held in Kigali mid this week with Rwanda proposing for sustainable procurement of all institutional uniforms, beddings, draperies by state institutions from textiles and fabric industries in the region. Another resolution of the forum was to carry out campaigns on ‘Buy East Africa, Wear East Africa including implementation of the declaration of Fridays as ‘Afrika Mashariki Fashion Day’ and organising the Annual ‘Afrika Mashariki Fashion Week’ exhibition to precede the EAC Heads of States Summit Meetings normally held on 30th November every year. Opening the Forum, Rwanda’s Permanent Secretary of Trade and Industry, Michel Minega Sebera, noted that CTA has the potential to create employment, improve economic well-being and widen the tax base in the region. Sebera called on EAC partner states to fast track the phasing out of the second hand clothes in order to reap the benefits of the sector. He informed the meeting that in 2016, Rwanda started implementing the Summit directives and embarked on the phase out of second hand clothes. The PS disclosed that the phasing out of second hand clothes in Rwanda had attracted new investments in the sector and led to more than 15 new companies investing in apparels. He...

It is an indisputable fact that African countries do not trade enough among themselves. To make any meaningful headway and register economic growth, countries within the continent must boost intra-regional trade. This will also help accelerate economic growth and development on the continent. The government of The Gambia through the Ministry of Trade, Industry, Regional Integration and Employment in collaboration with partners has been spearheading initiatives geared towards promoting trade within our continent. Regional trade integration has long been a strategic objective for Africa with some success in eliminating tariffs within regional communities. However, more still needs to be done. The signing of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Agreement by the overwhelming majority of African countries is a historic step towards rationalising Africa’s regional trade arrangements, deepen economic integration and draw on economies of scale and development of regional value chains. These many believe, would further accelerate the process of structural transformation of African economies. As a flagship project of the African Union Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want, the AfCFTA seeks to bring on board all the 55 African countries with a combined population of more than 1.2 billion people and a combined gross domestic product (GDP) exceeding US$2.5 trillion, making the continent the largest free trade area created since the formation of the World Trade Organisation (WTO). Analyst believe that Africa could double intra-regional trade by easing non-tariff barriers, including customs procedures and improving the continent’s poor transport infrastructure; that doing this will help boost economic...

On May 30, 2019 Africa made history as the Agreement establishing the AfCFTA officially entered into force. With 54 out of the 55 member states of the African Union signing the agreement, Africa brought into being the largest trading block since the formation of the WTO. The entry into force of the AfCFTA is also marked by the speed at which African countries worked together within a year to establish a regional trading block to promote intra-African trade following the adoption of the AfCFTA on March 21, 2018 in Kigali, Rwanda. Following the ratification and entry into force of the AfCFTA, 5 supporting Operational Instruments were launched during the AU Summit held in Niamey, Niger in July 2019. These instruments are the key tools that will support the launch of the operational phase of the AfCFTA with start of trading scheduled for July 2020. The occasion also marked the announcement of the Republic of Ghana as the country to host the AfCFTA Secretariat. The operational instruments of the AfCFTA 1.The Rules of Origin: A regime governing the conditions under which a product or service can be traded duty free across the region. 2. The Tariff concessions: It has been agreed that there should be 90 per cent tariff liberalisation and the deadline is 1st July 2020. (Over a 10 year period with a 5 year transition, there will be an additional 7 per cent for “sensitive products” that must be liberalised). This will be supported by the AfCFTA Trade in Goods online portal...

In a couple of weeks, Kenya will open the first phase of its multi–billion dollar Lamu Port, the beachhead to the Lamu Port South Sudan Ethiopia Transport (Lapsset) Corridor. That will be the second new logistics corridor after the Djibouti-Ethiopia standard gauge rail that went into service a few years ago. Yet to be done, Djibouti is also in the middle of a mega project to expand its port while to the south, Tanzania which has in recent years completed upgrades to the Dar es Salaam port, is now betting on a new port at Bagamoyo. Invariably, all these projects target the Eastern Africa hinterland with all contenders aiming to be the logistics hub of the region. Looking at East Africa’s or even Africa’s logistics map, it is not in dispute that the region and continent suffers a huge infrastructure deficit. But must the projects be this grandiose? There is indeed a case for developing infrastructure but a sense of proportion and degree of co-ordination are needed to make these projects viable. Multiple corridors provide critical redundancy in the event of failure, if they are inter-linked. But their economic efficiency needs to be looked at in more practical than academic terms because the economies are racking up huge debt to build these projects. For instance, the Lapsset Corridor aims to link Lamu, South Sudan and Ethiopia along a logistics umbilical cord comprising rail, an oil pipeline, electric power and roads. At the same time, if at all the Kenya standard...

The government of Zambia has signed a US US $147m deal with Africa Inland Container Depot (AFICD) of Tanzania for the establishment of a dry port in the central town of Kapiri Mposhi. According to the signed agreement, the port will be an integrated logistics and industrial hub that will provide services to clients across eastern, central and southern Africa thereby increasing regional market access for Zambian products. Dry port project The project will be built on a Build-Lease-Transfer (BLT), Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) model. The area where the Kapiri Mposhi Dry Port is earmarked for is located on the northern side of New Kapiri Mposhi Railway station, measuring approximately 4.3756 hectares (10.81 acres), with an already installed gantry crane of 36mt lifting capacity. CEO of the IDC Mateyo Kaluba said that construction will be done in two phases. Phase one will involve construction of the dry port while the second phase will see an establishment of a multi-facility economic zone. Share holders The Industrial Development Corporation (IDC), the investment arm of the Zambian government, will hold 15% of shares in the project while the Tanzanian firm, Tanzania-Zambia Railway Authority (TAZARA) will hold 85%. The Dar es Salaam Corridor Group (DCG) will take hold of the four-hectare piece of land, construct the Dry Port, operate (lease) it for 25 years and, thereafter, transfer all the immovable assets to TAZARA. Approximately 500 jobs will be created during construction and up to 3,000 direct and indirect jobs will be created when the dry port becomes operational. “This is a...

Kwame Nkrumah famously proclaimed on the night of Ghana’s independence that “Our independence is meaningless unless it is linked up with the total liberation of Africa”.  Africa, a continent rich in natural resources, holding around 30% of the world’s mineral resources is at the same time home to 5 of the 10 poorest countries in the world. In a recent report, the World Bank projects that a staggering 90% of the world’s poor may reside in Africa by 2030. Barriers to free regional trade, political turmoil, inadequate infrastructure and weak financial institutions remain key hurdles to economic advancement. Despite how grey the narrative looks, Africa’s growth outlook remains buoyant and continues to attract high foreign direct investment. Nkrumah’s vision was to restore Africa’s identity, “We are going to see that we create our own African personality and identity. We again rededicate ourselves in the struggle to emancipate other countries in Africa”. His desire was to see a well-functioning continent capable of harnessing its rich resources to become a global economic powerhouse. Kwame Nkrumah saw the need for neighbourhood/regional political independence – for he knew Ghana cannot be the only free country in Sub-Saharan Africa. He accordingly spent a great deal of his time, Ghana’s time and resources supporting the political liberation of fellow African countries. The going together, working together approach that Kwame Nkrumah and our political forefathers adopted in the political sphere is needed in economic development. Though recognized, the focus and zeal with which it was deployed in...

Symposium on Inclusive Participation of Women in Trade, which took place in Nairobi in September, was co-organised by Professor Leïla Choukroune and attended by Nancy, who is a PhD Candidate in the Faculty of Business and Law. Nancy says: ‘The Symposium dealt with the broader perspective of emerging global issues in trade and narrowed down to inclusivity of women in trade from a gender perspective. The event attracted high-level dignitaries including Kenya’s Minister for Trade, UNCTAD Secretary General, Ambassadors and CEOs from various organisations across the globe. Various presentations were made by specialists ranging from information technology, data analyses and legal perspectives. My paper was titled:’Legal Framework for Inclusion of Women in Trade: Case of the United Kingdom vis a vis Kenya.’ This was informed by the 2030 United Nations Agenda for Sustainable Development, which included 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) aimed at ending poverty, hunger and inequality, supporting action on climate change, improving access to health and education, and building strong institutions and partnerships. The inclusion of a standalone goal (Goal 5) on women’s equality, as well as the mainstreaming of gender and inclusion through the other 16 goals, is a key achievement for the international community. Gender inequality in most spheres of development remains a major barrier to human development. The presentation demystified the legal and institutional framework of the rights of women in trade, reasons for the shift from exclusion and marginalisation of women for many decades and an increase in inclusion by creation of relevant legislation...