Summary/Brief On 3rd July 2020, the Kenya Maritime Authority (KMA) in a notice issued to the public directed shipping lines to extend the free period on the return of empty containers by additional seven (7) days and three (3) days for transit and local traffic, from the existing granted periods. On 3rd July 2020, the Kenya Maritime Authority (KMA) in a notice issued to the public directed shipping lines to extend the free period on the return of empty containers by additional seven (7) days and three (3) days for transit and local traffic, from the existing granted periods. This materialized after consultations with various stakeholders in the maritime industry following KMA’s pledge to engage key players in the logistics chain, with a view of putting in place measures to handle delayed containers in the Northern Corridor stakeholders Zoom meeting convened and chaired by the Northern Corridor Secretariat for rapid information sharing, providing quick interventions and collaboration in mitigating the challenges and the impact of COVID-19 pandemic in each Member State and at each transit or transport node along the Corridor: Port, Weighbridges, One-Stop Border Posts, ICDs, and Transit Parking Yards. The COVID-19 pandemic has ravaged all sectors of the economy with measures, guidelines and protocols instituted by the East African region and individual member countries to curb the spread of the Coronavirus disease partly contributing to delays in clearance and movement of cargo at the port of Mombasa and along the Northern Corridor. These delays have contributed to longer truck...

Trade between East African Community member states has increased by 60.75 percent from $3.72 billion when the Common Market Protocol was launched in 2010 to $5.98 billion in 2018, latest trade data shows. The Common Market Protocol has boosted trade in the region by easing cross-border movement of goods and people, though numerous non-tariff barriers (NTBs) continue to hold back the region’s potential. The volume of trade among EAC member states increased rapidly between the years 2010 to 2013, but dropped for three consecutive years from 2014 to 2016. The EAC Trade and Investment Report shows that the value of intra-regional trade increased 9.4 percent to $5.98 billion in 2018 from $5.46 billion in 2017. This growth was partly attributable to EAC member countries’ increased preference to trading with each other to offset falling demand for the region’s products in European and US markets. According to the report, all EAC member states save for Burundi recorded growth in trade with their regional counterparts.

​​​​​​​IN a move to tackle foreign domination of shipping business in Africa, the African Union (AU) has adopted the Deep Blue Economy strategy by taking initiatives to promote maritime transport, port activities, maritime security, as well as interstate exchanges. In a report “Africa Blue Economy Strategy”, the AU noted that foreigners intentionally destroyed the budding African shipping lines and conferences to ensure that only Europeans offer such services and at their own prices. Besides, the AU is also expecting port activity in Africa to reach two billion tonnes by 2040. West Africa is home to port facilities in the process of continuous modernisation since the end of the colonial era. East Africa has expanded its ports, including Djibouti, which is responsible for exports to Saudi Arabia, Egypt and India. The port of Dar-Es-Salaam in Tanzania carries many imports from India and China. To this end the group also concluded plans to reduce, if not eliminate foreign domination of shipping businesses in the continent as it commenced research and studies in fisheries, aquaculture, conservation and sustainable aquatic ecosystems, shipping/transportation, trade, ports, maritime security, safety and enforcement, coastal and maritime tourism, climate change, resilience, environment, infrastructure, sustainable energy and mineral resources and innovative industries, polices, institutional and governance, employment, job creation and poverty eradication as well as innovative financing. According to the report, the AU noted that in its current configuration, maritime trade remains dominated by arms conglomerates which unilaterally set freight rates and thus organise the shipping market as they see...

Busia, 17 July 2020: The European Union (EU) Ambassador to Kenya Simon Mordue, in partnership with TradeMark Africa (TMA), visited the Busia One-Stop Border Post (OSBP) - the border crossing point between Kenya and Uganda - to deliver Personal Protective Equipments (PPEs) to the border authorities on the Ugandan and Kenyan side. The delivery was witnessed by Kenya’s Ministry of Health Chief Administrative Secretary (CAS) Dr. Rashid A. Aman, PS Ministry of EAC Kevit Desai and his Ugandan counterpart Edith Mwanje, Uganda Revenue Authority Commissioner for Customs, Abel Kagumire, TMA Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Frank Matsaert, TMA Kenya Country Director, Ahmed Farah, TMA Uganda Country Director, Moses Sabiiti and Busia County Commissioner Joseph Kanyiri. This is part of the EU’s wider support for mitigation measures against the spread of COVID-19 and continuous safe trade in Kenya across all the Kenyan borders. Today’s symbolic handover will cover the needs of customs, immigration, security, and port health officials on both sides of the border for a period of 3 months. Making his remarks at the event, EU Ambassador to Kenya Simon Mordue said: “Trade is the lifeline of the economy and many millions of both formal and informal jobs depend on it. By working together closely the Kenyan and Ugandan governments are ensuring that trade can continue through the border posts in Busia and Malaba throughout this COVID-19 crisis. Government agents working in the front line are essential to the cross-border flow of goods and need to be properly protected. Today’s first...

In Summary The new import tax changes for the current fiscal year are effective July 1. The decisions to stay application of the EAC CET rate and apply a higher duty rate are aimed at stimulating local production and safeguarding markets against cheap imports. East African Community (EAC) partner states—Kenya, Burundi, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda have adopted measures on Common External Tariff (CET) to boost local production in the region. The new import tax changes for the current fiscal year are effective July 1. They were approved during a pre-budget consultations by the region’s Ministers, Cabinet Secretary of Finance, held via video conference on May 13, 2020. The EAC Ministers have been holding the pre-budget consultations prior to reading the National budgets as a way of harmonizing fiscal measures in the region. The decisions of the Ministers/Cabinet Secretary for Finance on the CET measures were finally endorsed by the meeting of the Sectoral Council on Trade, Industry, Finance and Investment (SCTIFI) on June 3. The EAC CET is currently structured under three bands of 25 per cent for finished goods, 10 per cent for intermediate goods and zero per cent for raw materials and capital goods. In addition, there are a limited number of products under the sensitive list that attract rates above the maximum rate of 25 per cent whereby they range from 35 per cent to 100 per cent. For instance, Kenya will maintain application of the EAC CET rate of 25 per cent and apply a duty...

In Summary Businesses operating in tourism sector have welcomed re-opening of airports and resumption of international flights from August 1. Andrew Gatera runs a tour and travel company that largely targets tourists from China and Europe. He says since the Covid19 outbreak his company has lost up Rwf50 million. Businesses operating in tourism sector have welcomed re-opening of airports and resumption of international flights from August 1. Andrew Gatera runs a tour and travel company that largely targets tourists from China and Europe. He says since the Covid19 outbreak his company has lost up Rwf50 million. “Re-opening of airport for commercial flights is a positive development, but we still don’t expect a lot this year because we can’t be sure that clients will re-plan their trips and come,” he noted. “If this could lead to reinstatement of some of the cancelled bookings maybe the year would be saved, but this is not happening,” Mr Gatera added. He said tourism cycle needs at least five months of booking in advance, noting that so far no bookings have been done since the re-opening of the airport was announced. Mr Gatera noted that while Rwanda has been listed as one of the safest countries to travel to during this period, opportunities may only be available next year. "A few tourists who have been holed up in their houses for months are likely to visit at the end of the year, but these will be negligible to generate any significant returns," he said. Ministry...

Today the House of Lords’ International Relations and Defence Committee has issued its first report of the current parliament, The UK and Sub-Saharan Africa: prosperity, peace and development co-operation. The report rightly argues that the UK should take a greater strategic interest in and seek a stronger partnership with Africa to support the delivery of the African Union’s (AU) strategy. In fact, ODI’s written and oral evidence to the Committee argued that the government should consider building on the recent UK-Africa Investment Summit to lay the foundations for a new medium-term post-Brexit economic partnership, to diversify UK investment in Africa and increase trade by taking advantage of Africa’s integration. Together with the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Trade out of Poverty, we also suggested a UK-Africa Prosperity Commission is set up to inform these efforts as equal partners. The government must now take note of the House of Lords report, reset economic relations and publish an ambitious Africa strategy. The strategic approach to Africa falls short The Committee’s diagnosis on the state of UK-Africa economic relations is stark. It warns of a flatlining of the relationship between the UK and African countries between 2008-2018 in terms of trade and investment, at a time of growth in the continent and increased integration through the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). Reflecting insights from the APPG on Africa and ODI, it also presents the UK’s visa policy as a thorn damaging the relationship, but notes the good track record of UK aid for trade programmes such as TradeMark Africa and aid to support industrialisation in Ethiopia. It...

Trade delegates from Rwanda have recently unveiled the country’s post-Covid economic recovery and investment plan in a forum with Commonwealth Enterprise and Investment Council (CWEIC). HE Yamina Karitanyi, High Commissioner in the UK, was joined by Hon Soraya Hakuziyaremye, Minister of Trade, and the Hon Clare Akamanzi, CEO of Rwanda Development Board to discuss Rwanda’s economic successes to date, future investment opportunities and the Rwandan government’s Vision for 2020 and 2050. Prior to the pandemic, Rwanda had experienced a period of rapid economic growth from investment and industrialisation. Indeed, the country had enjoyed an average rate of 7-8% GDP growth in recent years, reaching a record high of 9.4% in 2019. Much like the rest of the world, however, Rwanda’s economy has not been immune to the debilitating effects of the pandemic. As businesses were forced to shut their doors in the nationwide lockdown, income generation ceased for the work force and consumer spending ground to a crippling halt. Hon Soraya Hakuziyaremye, Minister of Trade did not shy away from the financial reality, and told the council that they could expect Rwanda’s economy to retract anywhere between 35-105 billion dollars due to COVID-19. In response to the crisis, the government has launched a financial relief program to provide grants and food supplies for households and mitigate the impact of lockdown on private businesses. This new Economic Recovery Fund (ERF) totals over Rwf 100 billion, raised both from the Rwandan government and with aid from international funding partners. Tourism and hospitality...

The East African Community (EAC) is likely to see a sharp decline in Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs) this year owing to the current Covid-19 pandemic that continues to ravage economies across the globe. According to the latest World Investment Report 2020 by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (Unctad) FDIs in East Africa declined by nine per cent to $7.8 billion in 2019, from $9 billion in 2018. The report forecasts FDI inflows to the continent will fall by 25 to 40 per cent in 2020, exacerbated by low commodity prices. “Although all industries are set to be affected, several services industries including aviation, hospitality, tourism and leisure are hit hard, a trend likely to persist for some time in the future,” said James Zhan, Unctad director of investment and enterprise. The decrease, according to the report, comes after the continent recorded a 10 per cent decline in FDIs flows to $45 billion in 2019 from $46 billion in 2018. Alternatively, the expected transformation of international production also brings some opportunities for development, such as promoting resilience-seeking investment, building regional value chains and entering new markets through digital platforms, the report reads in part However, capturing these opportunities will require a shift in development strategies. According to Mukhisa Kituyi Secretary-General of Unctad, export-oriented investment geared towards exploiting factors of production, resources and low-cost labour will remain important. But the pool of such investment is shrinking, and the first rungs on the development ladder could become much harder to climb. He...

Economic disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has pushed East Africa’s growth projection for 2020 down to 1.2%, a rate that outstrips other African regions and is forecast to rebound to 3.7% in 2021, according to the African Development Bank’s (AfDB) East Africa Regional Economic Outlook 2020. The projection is under the baseline scenario that assumes the virus is contained by the third quarter of this year. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the region’s economic growth was projected at more than 5%, well above the continent’s average of 3.3% and the global average of 2.9%. However, COVID-19-induced shocks and a locust invasion have contributed to job losses, increased humanitarian needs and will aggravate poverty and income inequality. In the worst-case scenario, in which the pandemic persists until the end of 2020, growth is projected at 0.2, still above Africa’s predicted average of -1.7% and -3.4% under the two scenarios. At the launch of the report held in Nairobi on 8 July, Simon Kiprono Chelugui, Cabinet Secretary of Kenya’s Ministry of Labour, said East African countries could overcome the effects of COVID-19 and turn their economies around by mitigating the external and domestic risks. “We need to implement a decisive and coordinated response to contain the spread of COVID-19; mitigate its health and socio-economic effects; accelerate structural transformation; improve the investment climate, and maintain the peace and security of our region,” he said. The Regional Economic Outlook indicates that the COVID-19 pandemic will affect East African economies in many ways, such...