THE government is in the process to legalise a total of 693 unofficial ports in the country in a bid to improve marine transport, curb narcotic drugs and unlicensed firearms. The strategy is also meant to facilitate movement of goods and services besides increasing revenue collections. 348 out of the 693 unofficial ports, almost 50 per cent, are on Lake Victoria which is surrounded by Kagera, Mwanza, Simiyu, Geita and Mara regions. Deputy Minister for Works and Transport Mwita Waitara said yesterday that at least 24 unofficial ports will be formalised during this financial year. He directed TPA to revisit all levies charged at various ports, both official and unofficial, to enable the government to come up with realistic charges. Mr Waitara who was in the region for a one day tour also noted that in the current fiscal year, the government has set aside a total of 3.5bn/- for the rehabilitation of various ports in the country, including Bukoba, Kemondo (Kagera) and Mwanza South in Mwanza Region. During his tour of the region, Mr Waitara also visited the Bukoba and Kemondo Bay Ports and unofficial ports including Kyamkwikwi and Rwazi in Muleba District. He moreover, issued a seven-day ultimatum to the Tanzania Ports Authority (TPA), to ensure that a weigh bridge that has been lying idle at Kemondo Bay Port is functioning. In another development, the deputy minister directed the Tanzania Airports Authority (TAA), to find alternative areas for construction of modern airports that would cater for larger air...

It is 100 days since Peter Mathuki took the reins of leadership at the East African Community. Kenneth Bagamuhunda, EAC director-general in charge of Customs and Trade, quoting Donald H. McGannon who said leadership is an action not position, says this describes Dr Mathuki's leadership style in his first 100 days in office. Mr Bagamuhunda, who was the master of ceremony in a virtual meeting held on Wednesday also quoted Mark Gorman, an author and a motivational speaker, saying: "Leaders live by choice, not by accident." As he marks 100 days in office this week, the most challenging part of Dr Mathuki's journey as the 6th East African Community Secretary General has just begun. Re-established 21 years ago under the four pillars of Customs Union, Common Market, Monetary Union, and Political Federation, the regional bloc has been dogged with red tape, among many challenges, and it is unlikely to change much. Dr Mathuki inherited a divided EAC Secretariat, a laid-back Council of Ministers, donor apathy and hostility among the EAC partner states. But as the second Kenyan to occupy the SG's seat -- after the first SG Francis Muthaura -- his charm offensive has taken him to five of the six EAC partner states. He has met the leaders of Tanzania, South Sudan, Burundi, Rwanda and Uganda. "During my inauguration I committed to deploy a team spirit approach. At the Secretariat, we have commenced regular internal consultative meetings with the Heads of Organs, the Executive, the heads of institutions, the...

THE East African Business Council (EABC) has commended Tanzania’s decision of reducing the cost of testing Covid-19 for domestic travelers from 100 US dollars (about 231,860/-) to 50 US dollars (about 115,930/-) for RT- PCR test. Speaking here at the weekend after paying a courtesy call on the Arusha Regional Commissioner John Mongella, EABC Chief Executive Officer John Bosco Kalisa said the move will sustain and boost cross border trade in the East Africa Community (EAC) region. Mr Kalisa noted that such an initiative would attract more international tourists and service providers into the country, boosting the resilience and recovery of the tourism and economy at large. This comes amid reports of an increased services receipts to 221.3 million US dollars (about 512bn/-) in June this year, compared to 110 US dollars (about 255bn/-) last year, as reported by the Bank of Tanzania (BOT). “EAC partner states should provide stimulus package and fiscal incentives to the tourism sector as the EAC bloc lost a whopping 4.8 billion US dollars in international tourism receipts and 2.1 million jobs in the year 2020 due to Covid-19 pandemic,” explained Mr Kalisa. Tanzania has also reduced the cost of the Antigen Rapid Test from 25 US dollars (about 57,965/- to 10 US dollars (about 23,186/-) for all travellers entering the country and removed the test at all borders posts except at airports. The new charges have since taken effect, according to Health, Community Development, Gender, Elderly and Children, Dr Dorothy Gwajima. Earlier this year...

What you need to know: The review as part of the ongoing activities to enable women build their economic resilience beyond the Covid-19 pandemic. Covid-19 has worsened inclusion of women in the labour market as economic dynamics have abruptly shifted to the disadvantage of women. The State Department for Gender is reviewing its economic empowerment policy to integrate the emerging needs of women amid a ruffled economic environment shrinking opportunities for women than men. Ministry of Public Service and Gender, senior policy advisor, Elizabeth Adongo, termed the review as part of the ongoing activities to enable women build their economic resilience beyond the Covid-19 pandemic. “A lot of money has been invested in empowerment of women like the Sh2 billion earmarked for the Biashara Kenya Fund,” she said last week during the Annual Women Rights Organisation Convention (2021) convened by Crawn Trust. Last month, Women Enterprise Fund (WEF) launched Thamini, a loan product tailored to meet the credit needs of the at least eight million widows in Kenya. This interest-free loan facility, she said, is crucial to helping the vulnerable women rebuild their lives and stabilise economically. Affirmative funds On accessing markets, she said African Continental Free Trade Area provides an opportunity for women to trade their products across the region. Last March during the launch of a survey of the top 100 brands loved by women in Kenya, Gender Chief Administrative Secretary Rachel Shebesh reckoned of the findings as important in informing design of women empowerment initiatives. The survey...

The African Continental Free Trade Area agreement officially began on January 1, 2021. What have you observed? The AfCFTA is outlined in the African Continental Free Trade Agreement, with trade commencing on January 1, 2021. AfCFTA is the largest in the world in terms of participating countries since the formation of the World Trade Organisation. The agreement was brokered by the African Union and was signed in Kigali, Rwanda, on March 21, 2018. AU member states have continued to show interest in this continental project and, to date, the agreement has been signed by 54 out of 55 member states. There has been a lot of progress since the agreement moved from conception to implementation of a trade area. The organisational structures and operational instruments have been put in place with the nomination of the chief executive officer and other principal officers and the formal opening of the headquarters in Accra, Ghana. The management of AfCFTA has swung into action, reaching out to regional and international partner organisations, as well as sensitising stakeholders about the objectives of the organisation. For example, the secretariat partnered with Future Investment Institute to launch an initiative that will eradicate illicitly traded products from AfCFTA countries, and the cooperation should help countries to reduce disruptive structures that deprive governments revenues through their operations in the informal economies. They are also introducing some initiatives such as the creation of the continental tool/mechanism for monitoring, reporting and elimination of non-tariff barriers to increase the volume of cross-border...

ZANZIBAR business community has been implored to work hard and grab vast business opportunities that the government creates. Minister of State, President's Office, Labour, Economy and Investment Mudrik Ramadhan Soraga told Zanzibar National Chamber of Commerce (ZNCC) here over the weekend that the eighth-phase government is determined to create friendly business environment in the country. He asked all islanders to support the government-spearheaded blue economy policy toward economic prosperity, reminding ZNCC leaders of their central obligations to guide the private sector in the execution of major investment and development projects in the isles. "The government has trust on the private sector as the doers of major economic projects; and, you are lucky to have the listening government, which is committed to provide you with all you need for smooth operations," Minister Soraga said at the launch of ZNCC executive committees. He said the government is already reviewing some legislations, rules and policies that had been impeding businesses in the country. "The government expects you to support the blue economy because there is nothing tangible the government can achieve without engaging the private sector," said the minister, adding that the government is already working hard to introduce the corporate culture in the public operations. He said despite the COVID-19, which has wreaked havoc in many economies in the world, Zanzibar has managed to successfully absorb the shocks, thanks to strong business fundamentals. "We are already recovering from the effects of Corona; tourists are coming and industrial production is picking up," he...

Catholic Relief Services (CRS) has revealed that over Rwf720 million is needed within five years to promote the production of fruits and vegetables as well as commercialization the produce in different towns across the country. It was revealed on Thursday 12th August 2021 during the presentation of research findings on challenges that farmers engaged in horticulture production and vendors have been grappling with particularly during COVID-19 pandemic. The research was backed by CRS and the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources (MINAGRI). The study shows that at least Rwf720, 681,880 is needed to tackle challenges facing the sector. The funds are expected to be provided in installments starting with the first batch of Rwf148 million in the first year to ensure they are utilized for the right purpose. The funding will be utilized for trainings and capacity building farmers engaged in horticulture, provide capital for vendors selling their produce, building modern markets and buying post-harvest handling equipment among others. Dr. Jean Chrisostome Ngabitsinze, the Minister of State in the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources has revealed that the institution is ready to contribute to the cause to promote the production of fruits, vegetables and facilitate access to markets. “The study outlines the progress and challenges paving the way for next courses of action. The next move to raise funds to be utilized irrespective of available amount. We will draw emphasis on storages, markets and bring vendors together because it is difficult to help individuals when they are scattered,” he...

COVID-19 has exacerbated challenges to Africa’s food and agriculture sector and to its millions of smallholder farmers. At the same time, the pandemic has accelerated innovative efforts to develop and deploy the transformative power of digital technology to address these problems in ways that leapfrog past practices and traditional solutions. Emerging evidence from Asia and Africa suggests that digital technology holds promise to dramatically enhance smallholder productivity and incomes by increasing on-farm and off-farm efficiency, enhancing traceability, reducing vulnerability to counterfeit products, and improving farmers’ access to output, input, and financial markets. The change is driven by the introduction of new forms of intermediation and the collection, use, and analysis of massive amounts of agriculture data to disrupt existing business models. New strategic partnerships between the public and private sectors are an essential component for reaping the positive impacts of digital technology and avoiding unintended and unwelcome secondary effects. Digital technology as a transformational force to drive scale Digital technology is transforming the agricultural sector through the application of innovative tools and new business models. For the first time, many people in the value chain, including smallholder farmers, have access to real-time data and computational power making possible more effective selection and timing of product-to-market decisions, provision of credit, and access to micro-insurance. Digitized agriculture data is also creating network effects to drive scale. Coupled with the increasing embrace of the sharing economy, digitization and artificial intelligence make possible new business models and e-commerce platforms that connect farmers directly with markets, service providers, and...

The Uganda-Burundi highway will connect to Kobero One Stop Border Post On the Tanzania Border. Read original article

Speaking in Nairobi, Kenya during the EABC-KEPSA CEO Round Table on EAC regional integration, Nesbitt underscored the need for the EAC to harmonize taxes and product standards, open up East African skies and enforce agreed-upon EAC protocols to markedly improve the business and investment climate and boost economic resilience, recovery and growth. “We need to implement a regional coordinated approach on Covid-19 measures and get into action to build back our economies better amid the pandemic,” said Nesbitt. He elaborated that the high air passenger ticket and freight fares in the EAC increase the cost of doing business. He also called upon the EAC to formulate supportive policies for SMEs to innovate, improve skills and technology to be able to expand across the EAC border and the continent. “Transport infrastructure development and interlinkage are important to enable giants of East Africa to march across the rest of Africa and access the continental market,” said Nesbitt. The Chief Guest, Adan Mohamed who is the Cabinet Secretary for East African Community & Regional Development Kenya and the Chair of EAC council of ministers committed to improving the business environment in the EAC region in close partnership with the private sector-led by EABC Speaking at the CEO Round Table, John Bosco Kalisa, EABC CEO said: “As EABC we appreciate the political goodwill from the EAC Heads of State evidenced by recent High-Level Bilateral Engagements and State Visit to Kenya leading to resolution of trade barriers such as visa fees and recurring Non-Tariff barriers.”...