Afreximbank President Benedict Oramah told the 12th Extraordinary Summit of African Union (AU) Heads of State in Niamey, Niger that the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) will see each African country use its own currency in any transaction, doing away with the traditional reliance on the US dollar as the sole currency for cross-border trade payment. “PAPSS, developed in collaboration with the African Union is a platform that will domesticate intra-regional payments saving the continent more than Sh500 billion in payment transactional costs per annum while formalising an estimated Sh5 trillion intra-African trade,” he said. Tanzania’s banking sector recorded a profit before tax of TZS528b in 2017, compared to TZS461b in 2018, representing an increase of 14.64%. Trade Principal Secretary Chris Kiptoo said free intra-Africa trade would increase intra-Africa trade from the current 17 percent compared to intra-Europe trade (60 percent), USA (40 percent) and Asia at 30 percent. Tanzania trade with East Africa Community states worth Sh10.54 billion between January and May,28.58 percent more than the same period in 2017. Professor Oramah supported implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) deal saying a Sh100 billion kitty had been set aside to enable countries adjust in an orderly manner to sudden ‘significant’ tariff revenue losses as a result of the implementation of the agreement. “This facility will help countries to accelerate the ratification of the AfCFTA. You must not look back as starting the operational phase of the AfCFTA is a movement that is now unstoppable,” he...

Kenya on Wednesday urged investors from east and south Africa to explore investment opportunities in the country's strategic sectors. Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta said during the launch of 21st COMESA International Trade Fair and High Level Business Summit that Kenya has created a friendly investment climate. Kenyatta said that Kenyan is a leader in imports and exports of agricultural, horticultural and floriculture products, making it a strategic area for investors in different sectors of the economy. He said the government has undertaken legal and policy reforms aimed at making Kenya one of the most attractive investment destinations in the world. Kenyatta urged COMESA members to take advantage of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) to boost their socio-economic transformation. The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) is a regional economic organization in Africa, with 21 members including Djibouti, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Eswatini, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Sudan, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Rwanda, Burundi, the Comoros, Libya, Seychelles, Uganda, Tunisia and Somalia. Source: Xinhau

Heads of State drawn from the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) are keen to see the incorporation of small and medium enterprises under the impending border-less trade on the continent. The leaders who were represented at the opening of COMESA’s high level business summit in Nairobi on Wednesday lay emphasis on the growth of the micro-enterprises who between themselves contribute to the largest share of jobs and Gross Domestic Product (GDP) output. “Each government should have the political will to support SMEs as they wouldn’t be able to penetrate a continental market by themselves. Further, we risk developing a free market which only serves the big boys,” noted Zambia’s President Edgar Lungu. While the continent is adequately resourced with a hardworking and enterprising populace, trade between partner states has remained well below average as exports to the rest of the world remain dominant. Intra-trade within COMESA accounted for a mere Ksh.814 billion ($7.9 billion) in 2017 in comparison to a greater share of Ksh.9 trillion ($86.9 billion) in total global exports. Acting Mauritian President Paramasimuv Pillay attributed the depressive trade play-out to continued barriers to regional trade to further pile pressure on partner states who remain keen on sheltering their internal markets from any external influence. “We must promote policies and measures to better the business climate by, for instance, eliminating barriers to SME licensing. We can also seek to relax some of the rules of origin to enable enterprises to source for raw materials widely,” he...

Speaking during the opening ceremony of Source 21 COMESA business summit, Kenyatta also urged the member states to explore different products that they could trade with and encouraged them to trade amongst themselves. “We need to come up with innovative and practical strategies to promote industrialization and enhance trade in our region,” Kenyatta said. Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni also urged COMESA member states to integrate its highly fragmented market and follow in the footsteps of China which despite having a huge internal market, continues to pursue other markets. “China has an internal market of 1.3 billion people, yet they are fighting for other markets. They are fighting with the US to get more market, yet we continue to be satisfied with a small market,” Museveni said. In 2017, Intra-COMESA trade exports hit USD 7,914 from USD 7,757 in 2016. In 2017, COMESA trade imports hit USD 8,243 a rise from USD 7,307 BACK IN 2016. Kenya is currently holding the Source 21 COMESA International Trade Fair and High – Level Business Summit under the theme “The Hallmark of Quality”. The summit also includes a presidential public-private round table where heads of states interact with business leaders on key strategies to enhance industry competitiveness and formulate strategies to enhance local sourcing and intra-regional trade. The event has attracted members of the COMESA region aimed at increasing trade across Africa and to international states. Source: Capital News

For years, trade has proven to be a key driver of economic growth for many countries. It has also been the fuel for powering regional integration for continents. This could be the reason why Africa has, in recent decades, experienced a proliferation of sub-regional agreements including in the East African Community (EAC). The benefits of regional integration cannot be overemphasised as it provides an opportunity for countries to have constructive dialogue and to build mutually beneficial relationships grounded on shared values. The EAC demonstrates the possible benefits of regional integration in growing regional trade. According to a 2019 World Bank Report, EAC was the fastest growing region in Africa, with the regional economy expanding by 5.7 per cent  in 2018. The growth was attributed largely to infrastructure development that member states prioritised. The total EAC trade grew by 11.7 per cent to $52.4 billion in 2018 from $46.9 in 2017. EAC member states have been able to enjoy, among other pacts, a Common Market to trade freely on all types of economic resources whilst removing all barriers to trade in goods, services, capital and labour; a Free Trade Area in which EAC countries agree to remove barriers to trade on all originating goods coming from member states; and a Customs Union that harmonises custom duties through a Common External Tarriff. However, EAC’s potential in regard to growing regional trade is yet to be fully achieved. This is partially because individual member countries pursue their industrial policies and are likely to implement...

EAST African Business Council (EABC) has hailed President John Magufuli and his Kenyan counterpart Uhuru Kenyatta for their quest to promote the role of private sector in the East African Community (EAC) integration process. EABC Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Peter Mathuki issued the laudatory message to the two leaders who are part of the EAC Heads of State Summit, saying that the duo has demonstrated and reiterated their commitments to the EAC integration during their recent meeting in Chato, Geita. “Their words and action have re-energised optimism and reassured the East Africans of their deep commitments to uphold the spirit of the EAC regional integration process,” said Mr Mathuki yesterday. He further commended the EAC Summit for recognising the role of the private sector as the engine and driver of economic growth, reaffirming commitment to the principles of the EAC Common Market. The principles include nondiscrimination of nationals of other partner states on grounds of nationality, equal treatment of nationals of other partner states and transparency in matters concerning other partner states. “Indeed, political goodwill is critical to accelerate and boost intra-EAC trade and opportunities that lie on our own doorsteps. Together, we remain as one people, one destiny,” said Mr Mathuki who is also a former East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) member. Policy predictability and maintaining a liberal stance towards the Freedoms and Rights enshrined in the Common Market Protocol shall increase cross border trade and investments and significantly contribute to employment creation, export growth, revenue collection, wealth creation...

The ink on the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA)agreement is dry and the players are ready to trade, but a large and complicated hurdle remains - non-tariff barriers (NTBs). NTBs are a wide range of restrictive regulations and procedures, other than tariffs, that make trade difficult and/or costly. They are one of the main roadblocks to trade on the African continent – much more than tariffs and include customs clearance delays, restrictive licensing processes, certification challenges and rules of origin. “The time and costs of moving goods in Africa will be reduced if there is political willingness to fight non-tariff barriers,” UNCTAD Secretary-General Mukhisa Kituyi said. AfCFTA online NTBs reporting tool by UNCTAD and the African Union UNCTAD and the African Union are taking on these barriers through an online tool that aims to facilitate quicker and more efficient trade. Niger’s president, Issoufou Mahamadou, and Dr. Kituyi presented the new tradebarriers.africa platform to the African Union at the 12thAfrican Union Extraordinary Summit in Niamey, Niger on 7 July. “Looking at the map of Africa, one has a sad feeling of facing a broken mirror. Our generation has the historic responsibility of breaking these borders,” Mr. Mahamadou said. “The AfCFTA will benefit all Africans.” The AfCFTA non-tariff barriers online mechanism is designed to improve intra-African trade by offering a site for reporting and resolving non-tariff barriers experienced by businesses, particularly small ones, and those owned by women and youth. Lowering and managing non-tariff barriers better will also help maximize the anticipated benefits of the free...

TANZANIANS have opened a Chamber of Commerce in Ireland and EU focused on expanding the market for the country products abroad. Tanzania’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Director of Diaspora Department, Ambassador Anisa Mbega, said the chamber would open doors for business and investment between the two countries—Tanzania and Ireland. “It is my thought that Tanzania Chamber of Commerce Ireland will pave the way towards expanding the market for our products abroad…,” Ms Mbega said when representing Tanzania at the chamber opening ceremony in Dublin, Ireland over the weekend. “We highly welcome investors and business people to come and invest in Tanzania,” Amb Mbega told the Guest of Honour Richard Boyd Barrett Member of Parliament for Dún Laoghaire constituency. Councillor Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, representing Irish Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation Heather Humphreys said Tanzania has rich natural resources and serves six landlocked countries with its three major ports— Tanga, Mtwara and Dar es Salaam. “All of this makes Tanzania a better place to invest and trade,” she said. Councillor MacNeill said some Irish companies already working in Tanzania and that the country was well placed, both geographically and in terms of population, to be a good country to do business. The country’s good governance and economic and political stability are among the reasons for potential Irish investment to Tanzania. Mr Barrett said the chamber could be a really excellent resource for Irish business looking to expand, seeking advice and local guidance, as well as hopefully providing opportunities for partnership and...

Regional importers and exporters have asked the Kenya Revenue Authority to suspend implementation of the new Integrated Customs Management System (iCMS) until they address application challenges. The traders say the launch of the system this week was premature and that KRA did not train them in its use. The iCMS was launched in line with the World Trade Organisation’s requirement for simplification and harmonisation of international trade procedures. SINGLE-WINDOW SYSTEM The iCMS involves submitting export or import documents into a single-window system and is expected to reduce clearing time by at least 60 per cent. It replaces the Simba System, which runs on multiple platforms and requires multiple points of authentication for users, thereby taking more time. KRA says the new system has interactive capabilities that will eliminate redundant processes and automate all manual processes in the Simba System. In the iCMS, traders are required to submit sea manifests for both imports and exports 48 hours before a vessel arrives or departs. The manifest must include the Courier/Consolidator PIN to enable the cargo deconsolidation process and cargo handlers are required to ensure their systems are ready to receive system-to-system Customs Release Messages as manual releases will be discontinued. Once successfully implemented, all importers and exporters using it will be able to track their cargo. CHALLENGES But traders, shipping line agents, clearing and forwarding agents claim it was hurriedly implemented, leaving many struggling to learn how it works. Some say they do not have passwords to access the system, and have...

Busia and Malaba are among the border points where officials from the chamber of commerce will be stationed to make cross-border trade easier. Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Richard Ngatia on Monday said establishing stations in such border points will go along way in boosting trade. He spoke during the launch of the Kenya Trade Week and Expo. Ngatia said the chamber has obtained a desk at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, through the Ministry of Trade, for efficient issuance of documents such as certificates of origin. Also targeted are Namanga, Isebania, Moyale, Mombasa and Eldoret to serve exporters. This comes after Deputy President William Ruto said despite a rise in trade volumes in recent years, the balance is not in favour of Kenya because the country imports more than it exports. He said there is a need for the country to seize the opportunity of access to free trade area market to bridge the trade gap. Interventions, such as the proposal by the KNCCI, would make export a less tedious task, shoring up volumes of trade in favour of the country. Building a case for the proposal to make clearance at the border point easy, Ngatia said an efficient and easy issuance of vital trade documents will increase revenue streams for the taxman. For example, Ngatia said, the automation of issuance of ordinary certificates of origin in 2015 increased the revenue collected from Sh1.6 million to Sh4.5 million per month. Further, as part of ensuring a widened access to international...