MILLIONS of Tanzanian smallholder farmers complain when their farms produce little or no crop yield. The irony is that very often the farmers and their extension officers pay little attention to having the soil of their plots tested. The excuse, albeit justified, is that testing the health of the soil is a distant dream. This excuse will not be acceptable in future because of the technology imported from The Netherlands. Tanzania now has a mobile soil testing laboratory that uses Dutch technology known as electromagnetic. This technology is championed by a private company, the Arushabased Life Support Systems Tanzania Limited (LSST). The laboratory tests have the potential to increase Tanzania’s agricultural production. But the situation will change very fast if the use of mobile soil testing laboratory will be popularised by district councils and district agricultural development officers and encouraging farmers to test the health of the soil of their plots. Testing the soil of a farm will cost between 25,000/-and 30,000/- Dutch Vice-Minister of Agriculture and Food Quality Marjolijn Sonnema said she was excited to witness the launch of the mobile laboratory and her country was keen on being part of the process that would transform smallholder farming. The minister was in the country to sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU), between Tanzania and her country on aquaculture and poultry deputy Minister for Livestock and Fisheries AbdallahUlega and Ms Sonnema signed the document. Under the agreement, Tanzanians will get training in The Netherlands on how to increase productivity in...

Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) has affirmed its readiness for operationalisation of revamped Kisumu Port, as government remains focused in reviving maritime activities at Lake Victoria. KPA managing director Daniel Manduku yesterday said works have been completed and the facility is ready to start handling cargo, with a main focus on shipments to the hinterlands. Kisumu Port has been refurbished at a cost of Sh700 million, Manduku noted, as opposed to media reports that it cost Sh3 billion. Completed works include concreting of the port yard, construction of the quayside, repairs of the linkspan, repairs of the dry dock and rehabilitation of all buildings. Quayside is an area along the banks of a water body while a linkspan is a type of drawbridge used mainly in the operation of moving vehicles on and off a vessel. All roads within and the link roads to the port facility have also been repaired, Manduku said. “We are just waiting for the official opening ceremony. Anytime the visiting heads of state confirm availability. We are ready,” Manduku said. Transport CS James Macharia and Manduku inspected the facility last Friday. “The CS was very impressed with the amount, quality and speed of work done,” Manduku told the Star on phone. According to Manduku, Kisumu port can handle 50,000 TEUs or an equivalent of  200,000 metric tonnes. TEU stands for Twenty-Foot Equivalent Unit which can be used to measure a ship’s cargo carrying capacity. “It (Kisumu Port) will handle all types of cargo,” Manduku said, which...

One year ago, at the opening ceremony of the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, Chinese President Xi Jinping said Africa's development has great potential and this great continent is full of hope. In the first decade of the 21st century, six of the world's 10 fastest-growing economies were in sub-Saharan Africa. After decades of efforts to catch up, Africa now has a real chance to achieve stable development, accelerate its integration process and raise its international status. STABILIZED POLITICS Between 1896 and 1901, British colonists built a meter gauge railway in Kenya to link the port of Mombasa and Uganda to tighten control of the "British East Africa," a proof of the continent's history of colonial oppression. It was only after the 1960s and 1970s that most African countries emerged from many decades of colonial rule after a long and arduous struggle. Afterwards, however, the dark cloud of colonialism still shadowed the continent with many of these countries plunged into turbulence due to historical issues such as boundary demarcation, tribal and religious conflicts left by Western colonialists. Such factors as the imitation of the western political system, the lack of governance capacity by various African governments, and the intervention and manipulation of foreign forces also fueled the turmoil. Drawing on the bitter history lessons, African countries realized that development could not be achieved without a stable political environment. Since the beginning of the 21st century, African countries have gradually embarked on the road of unity and...

Africa's tripartite free trade area (TFTA) will be operational in early 2020, an official said on Tuesday. Francis Mangeni, director of trade and customs with the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) told Xinhua in Nairobi that so far five countries have ratified the TFTA that brings together COMESA, East African Community (EAC) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) trading blocs. "We expect another 11 countries to ratify the agreement before the end of the year so that the TFTA could be operationalized," Mangeni said on the sidelines of the sixth COMESA annual research forum. The five-day event will bring together policymakers, academia, think tanks, and the private sector from the 21 member states to discuss emerging topical issues in regional integration. Mangeni said that the TFTA will also be a building bloc for the African Continental Free Trade Area. The COMESA official added that East African Customs Union and Southern African Customs Union have already completed negotiations on tariff reductions. He noted that countries that are not members of either EAC or SADC will use the current trade liberalization trade regime of COMESA. Mangeni revealed that the ultimate aim of the TFTA is to reduce gradually the tariffs for all goods traded in the bloc to zero percent. "In the first year of operations countries (are) to fully liberalize trade on 66 percent of all goods and achieve 100 percent in five years," he said. Source: Xinhau

While the African Union (AU) has developed ambitious plans for continental free trade it is becoming clear that free movement of people lags behind. This blog identifies six obstacles that impede progress on free movement for people in Africa and considers the prospects for future development. The AU Summit held in Niger on July 7 2019 witnessed the rapid ratification of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). One of the most rapidly ratified and fastest treaties to enter into effect (it took little more than a year from inception), AfCFTA has now been ratified by 27 African countries, including Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya, South Africa and Ghana, although Nigeria, Algeria, Tanzania and some others have not yet ratified the agreement. Remarkably, at that Summit the Protocol for a Free Movement of Persons was once again missing from the agenda. Intertwined as they must be if they are to operate effectively, the free trade treaty should have been ratified and implemented hand in hand with arrangements for the free movement of people under the Protocol on Free Movement for Africa, adopted by the AU in January 2018. Unfortunately, only four countries (Madagascar, Niger, Rwanda and Sao Tome & Principe) have signed up to the latter arrangement; none of the bigger countries, such as Algeria, Egypt, Nigeria, South Africa and Ethiopia, have ratified it. According to the African Development Bank’s Africa Visa Openness Report 2018, African citizens need a visa to travel to 51% of other African countries, 24% demand a visa on arrival and only 25% operate...

He urged Japan to learn from the example of the Tony Elumelu Foundation, which champions empowering African entrepreneurs, as the most sustainable means of accelerating the development of Africa. “At TICAD 2016 in Kenya, Japan pledged $30b (sh110.5 trillion) for Africa. This year you have generously increased this to $50b (sh184.2 trillion),” Elumelu said. “If we invested just 5% in Africa’s new generation of entrepreneurs, following my Foundation’s robust, proven model of getting capital directly to those best placed to catalyze growth and create real impact, we could touch 500,000 lives, across the 54 African countries, broadening markets, facilitating job creation, improving income per capita, and laying the key foundation for political and economic stability”, he added. Elumelu’s statement captured his vision of a relationship between Japan and Africa, which prioritises economic and shared prosperity. He outlined the three key pillars of a bold and transformative structure: investment in infrastructure, partnership with the African private sector, and investment in Africa’s youth. He urged Japan to learn from the example of the Tony Elumelu Foundation, which champions empowering African entrepreneurs, as the most sustainable means of accelerating the development of Africa. The Tony Elumelu Foundation, in just five years has assisted over 7,500 African entrepreneurs across every Africa, with seed capital, capacity building, mentorship and networking opportunities through its $100 million Entrepreneurship Programme. Elumelu’s advice carried the weight of his track record of business success, founding Africa’s global bank, United Bank for Africa (UBA), which has grown its presence to 20...

The Sixth COMESA Annual Research Forum is underway in Nairobi, with over 80 leading academicians, trade experts from the public and private sector, policy think-tanks, and innovators in science and technology from the COMESA Member States attending. The week-long forum is intended to share knowledge and deliberate on empirical issues on how to promote intra-COMESA trade through innovation. Thirteen research papers prepared by researchers from across the region will be presented at the Forum, which is anchored under the theme: “Promoting Intra-COMESA Trade through Innovation”. The forum is primarily concerned with ensuring that the highest quality research-derived evidence informs policy development in COMESA. Assistant Secretary General of COMESA, Dr Kipyego Cheluget, told the researchers that there was a ready demand for the research forum’s output. “Member States have continued to appreciate the critical role of the policy analysis and many of them have been implementing the policy recommendations on various papers presented in the previous research forums,” he said. “Effective decision-making requires good advice, and that depends on informed use of evidence both in developing policy and in evaluating its effect once implemented.” He added that capacity building interventions in research and training carried out by COMESA are aimed at enhancing not only the capacity of the COMESA Secretariat but also the capacity of the Member States in economic and trade policy analysis and research, as well as trade negotiations. The Principal Secretary in the State Department of Trade in Kenya, Dr Chris Kiptoo, said the best way to achieve...

Globalisation, which has driven economic growth but has also been criticised for leading to unacceptable levels of inequality, will be high on the agenda at the 28th World Economic Forum (WEF) on Africa tomorrow. The WEF said in a statement yesterday that it would also discuss government policies and responsible business practices to provide a foundation for a more inclusive society. It said tackling corruption, universal healthcare provision and the protection of workers in the gig economy had a role to play in building more equitable societies. This year’s WEF on Africa will convene 1100 leaders from 100 countries, representing business, government, academia, civil society, media and the arts under the theme “Shaping inclusive growth and shared futures in the 4th Industrial Revolution (4IR)”. Elsie Kanza, the head of Africa at the forum, said top leaders would come together to create the conditions for socio-economic investment to take place. “Africa, like all regions of the world, faces great challenges. "For the region to prosper in an increasingly globalised world, it needs transparent governance, competitive economies and peaceful societies.” Heads of state or governments participating in the meeting include President Cyril Ramaphosa; Mok- gweetsi Masisi, President of Bo- tswana; Azali Assoumani, President of the Union of the Comoros; Ma- ndulo Ambrose Dlamini, Prime Minister of eSwatini; Sahle-Work Zewde, President of Ethiopia; Peter Mutharika, President of Malawi; Hage Geingob, President of Namibia; Yemi Osi- nbajo, Vice-President of Nigeria; Yo- weri Museveni, President of Uganda; Danny Faure, President of Seychelles; and Emmerson Mnangagwa,...

Africa's tripartite free trade area (TFTA) will be operational in early 2020, an official said on Tuesday. Francis Mangeni, director of trade and customs with the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) told Xinhua in Nairobi that so far five countries have ratified the TFTA that brings together COMESA, East African Community (EAC) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) trading blocs. "We expect another 11 countries to ratify the agreement before the end of the year so that the TFTA could be operationalized," Mangeni said on the sidelines of the sixth COMESA annual research forum. The five-day event will bring together policymakers, academia, think tanks, and the private sector from the 21 member states to discuss emerging topical issues in regional integration. Mangeni said that the TFTA will also be a building bloc for the African Continental Free Trade Area. The COMESA official added that East African Customs Union and Southern African Customs Union have already completed negotiations on tariff reductions. He noted that countries that are not members of either EAC or SADC will use the current trade liberalization trade regime of COMESA. Mangeni revealed that the ultimate aim of the TFTA is to reduce gradually the tariffs for all goods traded in the bloc to zero percent. "In the first year of operations countries (are) to fully liberalize trade on 66 percent of all goods and achieve 100 percent in five years," he said. Source: China Org

Plant and animal products traded across the world are subjected to global standards under what is known as Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) measures set by the World Trade Organisation (WTO), a body that deals with global rules of trade. These measures are generally meant to protect human, animal and plant health from risks arising from contaminants, toxins, additives, or disease organisms. They are also meant to protect animal or plant life from pests, diseases, and disease-causing organisms. In essence, if a Rwandan trader exports fruits to the European market or any other market, the products are usually subject to inspection to check if they live up to those standards. In other markets, the products will be subject to testing of packaging and labeling standards, processing methods and certification. In many cases, countries with stronger SPS standards tend to trade less with countries that have weaker SPS standards. More developed nations normally have stronger standards and demand a lot from less developed countries and less developed countries end up being victims. For instance, between 1995 and 2017, developed countries raised 242 SPS trade concerns as opposed to only 7 concerns raised by least developed countries. 226 measures were maintained as opposed to only 1 measure, according to WTO. Rwanda has particularly experienced these issues as exporters of food and other agricultural products have had their products rejected at the borders of the European Union country, the country’s largest export destination of horticulture products. According to data from the Ministry of Agriculture, Rwandan traders...