Over the past few weeks, Kenya and Uganda have been in a protracted stand-off over safety agreements in the movement of cargo across their borders. In protest to a decision by the Ugandan government that Kenyan truck drivers would not be allowed to enter the country but required to hand over to Ugandan drivers their trucks who would then deliver the cargo to the final destination, Kenyan truck drivers and transport companies halted movement of cargo, which saw trucks queue stretching to more than 50 kilometres. This no-entry policy directive came after a number of foreign truck drivers entering Uganda tested positive for the virus. To be fair to the Ugandan government, they had grounds to be concerned. Kenya was not strictly enforcing some of its directives. For example, truck drivers were required to be tested 48 hours before leaving Mombasa but some of them were driving straight to Malaba and Busia border without being tested and with those tested not waiting for the results and travelling with the certificate as required.This led to a large number of drivers showing up for test ing at the border crossing, leading to long queues awaiting clearance. With the region being a common market protocol where movement of people and goods are expected to flow with little restriction, it was expected that member States would come up with joint safety standards protocol measures at common borders, but there has only been disarray. Uganda is not the first country to try and implement a...

If African airlines are to survive the covid-19 pandemic onslaught, then the immediate injection of cash is needed to avoid insolvency or bankruptcy of the airlines. Carriers on the continent are expected to lose US$ 8.1bn in revenues this year in the severe and an unprecedented event which is forcing players under the African Airlines Association (AFRAA) to seek more avenues for support to the industry. The Afreximbank has however assured that there are existing opportunities for African airlines under the bank’s Pandemic Trade Impact Mitigation Facility (PATIMFA). Covid-19 pushes Kenya’s luxurious hotel out of business AFRAA’s Secretary-General, Abdérahmane Berthé notes that the impact of the pandemic is enormous and it could lead to insolvency or bankrupting African airlines in 2020. The continental airlines’ body headquartered in Nairobi has proposed setting up an aviation sectorial covid-19 recovery fund for the support of the airline industry. “We will continue to seek more avenues for support to the industry from development finance institutions, country development partners and international donors as we navigate through these tough times,” added Berthe. On June 2, AFRAA released an analysis of the impact of the pandemic on the airline industry in Africa which reveals an estimated revenue loss of US$ 8.103 billion this year. The analysis is the first in a series of studies that will be published by the Association examining the toll of the pandemic on Africa’s air transport sector. The impact assessment analysis further shows a 90.3 per cent year on year passenger traffic...

THE situation at Tanzania-Kenya borders remains fragile as truck drivers from the two countries are obstructed from entering either side through Namanga and Holili/Taveta frontiers. The border tension between the two biggest regional economies resurfaced last week after Kenya defied the Dar es Salaam-Nairobi agreement on smooth cross border trade amid Covid-19 outbreak. Once again, Kenyan authorities were the provokers after opting to block truckers from Tanzania at Namanga One Stop Border Post (OSBP) claiming that their Covid-19 negative certificates were not genuine. Ironically, the Kenyans wanted their drivers to cross to Tanzania without testing, something that led Tanzanian district and regional authorities to refuse their entry to the country. Drivers are consequently frustrated as they are stranded at the busier border posts with long queues of trucks, as there is still no light on the immediate solution to the standoff. Longido District Commissioner (DC), Mr Frank Mwaisumbe confided with the ‘Daily News’ that while the situation remained unchanged until yesterday afternoon, there were different meetings taking place to find a solution to the problem sooner than later, but was not sure when the matter will be resolved. Mr Mwaisumbe said that there were officials from Tanzania in Nairobi, Kenya and was hopeful that by today at least more information on the outcome of the talks will be divulged. “The situation has not changed; drivers are stranded at the border in long queues at both ends of their country’s frontiers. The matter has been taken up at higher levels of...

The building of the Berbera Corridor is bound to turn around trade links between Somaliland and Ethiopia. Somaliland President Muse Bihi opened the first completed 12-kilometre phase the project, the second major infrastructural project the country building after the expansion of the Port of Berbera by the Dubai Ports World (DP World). The 72 kilometre-road is an ambitious and strategic road project that will also enable Somaliland to benefit greatly from the winds of change blowing across the Horn of Africa. The project is worth US$400m and once complete with link Ethiopia’s border town of Togochale to Berbera Port in Somaliland which is strategic to landlocked Ethiopia. It is estimated Somaliland imports to Ethiopia is worth over US$800m annually and the Berbera-Togochale corridor will be instrumental in facilitating import-export trade for Ethiopia’s economy. The road projects are being funded by the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development. Eng. Tahir Mehmood of Nael $ Bin Harmal Hydaro-export Establishment (NBHH) the firm tasked with the construction of the Berbera Corridor reiterated the firm ‘s commitment of completing the highway within the stipulated timeframe. Minister of Transport and Highway Development, Abdilahi Abokor Osman said the road has been made to last for ages. “We are here to open part of the Berbera Corridor, which is a 12 KM stretch that has been completed. I would like to point out that this road is different from the earlier road which was built to handle 6 tonnes,  the new road can now handle 40 tonnes and...

The fight against Covid-19 pandemic will not be won if smugglers continue bringing counterfeit goods into the country. Industrialisation and Trade Cabinet Secretary Betty Maina has warned that as the country puts efforts to fight the global disease, unscrupulous business persons are taking advantage to sell counterfeit goods. In a speech read on her behalf by Trade CAS Lawrence Karanja during the destruction of counterfeit products worth Sh27 million in Athi River yesterday, Ms Maina said the impounding and destruction is proof of the government’s seriousness and commitment to rid the country of fake goods. “If you look at the description of these goods, you will feel disturbed. Most ofthem are of poor quality, meaning they have no value to the consumers. Some of them like electric cables and circuit breakers can cause danger and result to health and safety issues,” she said. The CS noted that with support from the Trademark East Africa, the Ministry of Trade and Industrialisation is finalising the national baseline survey on illicit trade. The report will be launched on June 10 during the World Anti-Counterfeit Day. Some of the goods destroyed through burning included face masks, medicines, clothing, electronic items, cosmetics and stationary, which were replicas of some popular local and international brands. Source: Standard Media

Uganda has refused to budge on its opposition to mandatory use of the Naivasha Inland Container Depot as directed by Transport Cabinet Secretary James Macharia. This is even as Covid-19 infections among truck drivers soar. Last week, Kenya announced Naivasha dry port as the transshipment centre for all transit cargo. This was one of the measures it said would help contain spread of the virus. Covid-19 testing numbers for Mombasa obtained by Saturday Nation show that over 200 truck drivers are among the 653 positive cases recorded by the county, a 30 per cent share, showing how fragile the situation is for the transport and logistics sector. Since May 30, more than 60 drivers have tested positive for the coronavirus in Mombasa, as the government plans to start targeted mass testing for an estimated 2,500 drivers. On Thursday, Uganda, which is the Mombasa port’s biggest customer, said Kenya should suspend compulsory evacuation of cargo direct from Mombasa to the Naivasha Inland Container Depot (ICD) since the facility is not ready for use and has no basic amenities to facilitate trade. Uganda’s Minister for Works and Transport Gen Edward Katumba asked Mr Macharia to rescind his decision and address issues raised by transporters before implementing the directive. “I would like to reaffirm the Uganda government’s commitment to use the Naivasha ICD in the spirit of regional integration. On the other hand, I would like also to reaffirm that the findings of the technical team in their visit to the ICD need...

NAMANGA, Kenya — They haul food, fuel and other essential supplies along sometimes dangerous roads during tough economic times. But Africa's long-distance truckers say they are increasingly being accused of carrying something else: the coronavirus. While hundreds of truckers have tested positive for the virus in recent weeks, the drivers say they are being stigmatized and treated like criminals, being detained by governments and slowing cargo traffic to a crawl. That has created a challenge for governments in much of sub-Saharan Africa, where many borders remain closed by the pandemic, on how to strike a balance between contagion and commerce. Countries are struggling to reach common ground. “When I entered Tanzania, in every town that I would drive through, they would call me, ’You, corona, get away from here with your corona!’” said Abdulkarim Rajab, a burly Kenyan who has been driving trucks for 17 years and recalls when drivers were being accused of spreading HIV during that outbreak. Rajab and his load of liquefied gas spent three days at the Kenya-Tanzania border, where the line of trucks waiting to be cleared stretched into the distance and wound around the lush hills overlooking the crossing at Namanga. Tanzania closed the border there this week, protesting Kenya's efforts to re-test all incoming truckers, including those who even had certificates showing they had been tested in the previous 14 days. It was the second time the frontier was closed in less than a month and was taken after many Tanzanian truckers with...

TWO weeks after Tanzanian and Kenyan leaders agreed on modalities for enabling truck drivers cross at border posts, Kenyan authorities have started blocking Tanzanian truckers from crossing Namanga frontier on grounds of lacking valid Covid-19 clearance certificates. Responding in kind, Tanzania has also started restricting Kenyan truckers from accessing the country. The government confirmed yesterday that Kenya is blocking Tanzanian truck drivers from crossing the Namanga One Stop Border Post (OSBP) claiming that they don't have valid certificates that show that they have tested negative for Covid-19. The development is contrary to the agreement reached in Arusha by transport ministers of the two countries at the climax of their one-day meeting at the Namanga border post on May 22, this year. Speaking to the 'Daily News', Deputy Minister for Works, Transport and Communication Eng Atashasta Nditiye, said the move by the Kenyan side was a breach of the agreement and could trigger another dispute. "Our counterparts are claiming that they don't trust Tanzanian's certificates and laboratories, but this wasn't part of our agreement," he told this paper in a telephone interview. He said the move might lead to the revival of the dispute that had been resolved and cause unnecessary inconveniences. " We learnt about these challenges facing Tanzanian truck drivers since yesterday (Wednesday), what is happening is contrary to the agreement reached by the responsible ministers, they have breached the resolutions," he said in a nutshell. On his part, Deputy Minister for Health, Community Development, Gender, Elders and Children,...

The COVID-19 pandemic has renewed calls for African states to prioritise both domestic production and regional integration. East Africa’s experience over the last decade suggests that tensions exist between these ambitions. To enact the ‘Made in Africa’ agenda across the continent, economic nationalism might need a rethink alongside greater dialogue between states. As the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has begun to be felt across Africa, debates on how the continent coordinates a response have quite naturally focussed upon the most immediate and pressing issues. Should Africa follow other countries’ lead and impose lockdowns to contain the virus? Can Africa’s under-resourced healthcare systems cope with a widespread outbreak? How does Africa’s policy community respond to the impending economic fallout that will inevitably hit the continent? Within the midst of these debates, others have also begun to consider Africa’s post-pandemic future and, in particular, its place within the global economy. For political leaders, business executives and policy experts alike, the COVID-19 outbreak has exposed the vulnerability of many African economies and their dependency upon global supply chains, which have been severely disrupted during the pandemic. Regional production networks Accordingly, it has been argued that African economies urgently need to begin developing their own industrial capacities and prioritising regional (rather than global) production networks. The justification behind this ‘Made in Africa’ agenda is that a combination of domestic industrial capacity and shorter supply chains will make African economies much more resilient against future exogenous shocks. The added bonus is that it would...

United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (Addis Ababa) Nairobi — The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is still the agreement with great potential to foster regional economic integration and economic growth, and take Africa to the next level, even in the midst of a crippling coronavirus crisis, panellists on a COVID-19 Recovery Mechanism and AfCFTA webinar agreed Thursday. The panelists agreed the AfCFTA was a crucial move towards removing the continent's heavy reliance on commodity and agricultural exports leading to exponential growth in the manufacturing sector, export diversification and creation of quality jobs if its full potential to be transformational for all Africans is tapped. Regional Integration Division Director at the Economic Commission for Africa, Mr. Stephen Karingi, in his remarks said a lot of empirical work had been done by ECA showing what the AfCFTA means for Africa. "One of the things we have been able to demonstrate empirically is that the AfCFTA has the potential to deepen not only the regional integration of the continent but also to allow us to do more value addition in our production processes," he said. This, added Mr. Karingi, presents an opportunity not only to create economic resilience but also create quality and more valuable jobs compared to jobs that are not based on industry. "We know what the AfCFTA means for this continent. COVID-19 has exposed that had we implemented the AfCFTA earlier, we would be in a better position than we are now," he said, adding the ECA's analytical...