The East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) is looking to develop policies that will among others increase resource allocation for the expansion of the Port of Mombasa to further improve efficiency at the port.

The Assembly also targets construction of more Special Economic Zones across the region to enhance trade activities.

The Mombasa Port remains one of the busiest economic hubs across the East Africa Community region with the Kenya Ports Authority having handled about 27 million tonnes of cargo in 2017.

Kenya has been investing in the expansion of the port to increase capacity and decongest traffic, with the first phase completed in September 2016, and phase two set to begin this year.

The assembly noted that it is also keen to push for policies that will support the construction of more Special Economic Zones across the region to support expansion of trade activities as well as the creation of job opportunities.

The Assembly is also calling for reduced cargo clearance fee at the port to boost trade activities.

The EALA is on an assessment tour of institutions under the East Africa Community on the Northern Corridor.

Source: KBC

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of TradeMark Africa.