Nairobi, Kenya – 13 March 2025 – TradeMark Africa’s (TMA) 2023/2024 Annual Report reveals significant improvements in trade efficiency across East, Southern, the Horn, and parts of West Africa. Regulatory document issuance for livestock and fish products in Tanzania has reduced from two weeks to one hour, and truck clearance times in Mombasa have been halved. Port infrastructure upgrades have also cut clearance times by over 50% in select African ports.
TMA, a donor-funded organization, highlights its investments in digital trade solutions, infrastructure, and partnerships to dismantle trade bottlenecks. The Mifugo system in Tanzania, a government partnership, now allows online permit applications, doubling government revenue in the sector. In Djibouti, the Fleet Management System is expected to reduce trade costs by 10% and clearance times by 30%.
Infrastructure improvements, such as upgrades at Lakes Tanganyika and Kivu ports and the Mbaraki-Nyerere Road in Mombasa, have eased congestion and reduced transit delays. In Mombasa, truck turnaround times have dropped from 26 to 15 hours.
Partnerships have also expanded economic opportunities. In Rwanda, women-led businesses secured $600,000 in export deals, and the iSOKO e-commerce platform has registered over 78,000 users, 90% of whom are women. TMA has also signed a new MoU with ECOWAS for West Africa expansion and received over $75 million in funding from Finland and the Netherlands for sustainable trade initiatives.
TMA Board Chair H.E. Hailemariam Desalegn Boshe and Council Chairman Leo Svahnback emphasized the organization’s success in building trust and connecting stakeholders. TMA CEO David Beer outlined priorities including scaling up digital trade, reinforcing trade corridors, and embedding sustainability into trade policies.
TMA’s focus remains on building partnerships to break down trade barriers, expanding intra-African trade, and strengthening Africa’s position in global markets. The full TradeMark Africa Annual Report 2023-2024 is available at https://www.trademarkafrica.com/annual-reports/.
