EAST African Community (EAC) Deputy Secretary General in charge of Productive and Social Sectors, Mr Christophe Bazivamo, has said the EAC draft Investment Policy, currently under consideration by the Council of Ministers, envisages a transformed upper middleincome EAC that is a competitive common investment area. The EAC official told participants of an EAC –facilitation, liberalisation and protection of cross-border investment. “Partner states are to streamline and simplify administrative procedures related to investments, promote and maintain dialogue with the private sector and exchange business information,” said Mr Bazivamo. He further disclosed that the EAC had at the regional level, through the Consultative Dialogue Framework, developed an open channel where the private sector, civil society and other interest groups interface with the Secretary General. Mr Bazivamo reaffirmed the Secretariat’s role in advocating for a better and conducive climate investment in the region. “I take this opportunity to thank our partners Afrika Verein and EABC for continued good working relationship and request for further collaboration in supporting the private sector, to achieve the business goals and promote the region as an ideal place to invest and do business,” he added. On his part, East African Business Council (EABC) Executive Director Mr Peter Mathuki was optimistic that if Non-Tariff Barriers (NTBs) which hindered trade within the EAC Common Market are removed, the domestic demand and market of over 150 million people from the six EAC partner states will attract investments from Germany and all over the world as it will be more economically viable...

The  Busia Deputy Governor, Moses  Mulomi has urged the Kenya Highways Authority (KeNHA) to start the construction of the Busia to Kisumu highway. Speaking  after holding consultative talks with the Canadian High Commissioner to Kenya, Ms. Lisa  Stadelbauer  in his office on Wednesday, Mulomi said the ongoing works were merely temporary by Kenha after consultation with the County government to carry out pothole patching and improve drainage along the road. “The main contract will comprise improving the road to Busia to a dual carriage way and ensuring that other supportive structures are in place,” he said. He announced an additional funding of Sh.100 million to the initial Sh.200 million that will be used to improve part of infrastructure in the town. “By June, the design work will be complete and I hope by the end of the year, the works will have started,” he said and explained that additional activities will  include part of the dualling. The deputy governor further raised concerns over the issue of parking especially of trailers along the road awaiting transit to Uganda and other East African Community  states. “We have already bought six acres of land at Mundika and with additional funding, we hope to construct a modern trailer park with facilities like a police station and  other requisite facilities,” he said. The Deputy Governor further said a five kilometre road will soon be constructed by Kenya Urban Roads Authority (KURA) to enhance activities between the town and Alupe  University College. “We hope that very...

Ethiopia will host the 2019 edition of the World Export Development Forum (WEDF), state affiliated media outlet Fana Broadcasting Corporate (FBC) reported on Wednesday. Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa will host the WEDF 2019 edition from November 19-22. The forum which will bring together hundreds of business leaders, policymakers and trade development officials to address international business competitiveness issues is expected to further increase the international investment profile of Ethiopia, reported FBC. WEDF will coincide with the Africa Industrialization Week, with sessions designed to help business make the most of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), reported FBC. The AfCFTA, which was signed by 44 African countries when it was launched in Kigali, capital of Rwanda, in March 2018, aspires to create a tariff-free continent that can grow local businesses, boost intra-African trade, spur industrialization and create more jobs. The AfCFTA is expected to take effect later this year. The continental free trade pact paves the way for accelerating the establishment of the Continental Customs Union and the African customs union, according to the African Union. Past editions of WEDF have included trade related topics including investing in value addition, addressing the skills mismatch, making the most of free trade deals, business to business matchmaking platforms and sustainable packaging. The Ethiopia Ministry of Trade and Industry and the International Trade Center will co-host the 2019 World Export Development Forum, which is expected to take place at the African Union Headquarters in Addis Ababa. WEDF is a global forum dedicated to...

African countries have a better chance to benefit from the digital revolution through collaborating as opposed to working as separate entities, Heads of State attending the Transform Africa Summit have said. The summit, which opened in Kigali yesterday, was attended by Presidents Paul Kagame, Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya and Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta of Mali. Speaking at the opening of the two-day summit, President Kagame said that collaboration was a sure way to navigate through the complex global dynamics in regards to the digital agenda. He said that it would be wise to steer away from the tendencies that have often divided the continent. “Africa can only protect our peoples’ interests and increase the size of our market, through integration and cooperation,” he said. As a united front, Kagame said that the cooperation could be best exhibited in aspects such as harmonising laws and regulation as well as joint efforts in availing infrastructure resources. “This is especially the case when it comes to harmonising laws and regulations, and ensuring that Africa’s ICT infrastructure is managed in a sensible way,” he said. The emergence of a common African agenda on ICTs, he said, should not be a source of worry to anyone as it benefits both Africa and its partners globally. The President added that with the African Continental Free Trade Area now in force, the continent ought to keep industrialisation and technology agendas in close alignment to make the best of both trends. Kagame also challenged the youth and other stakeholders...

The second Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF2020) scheduled to take place in Kigali, Rwanda from Septem1 to 7th 2020 will target the execution of Intra-African trade deals worth more than $40 billion, President of the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), Prof. Benedict Oramah announced on Wednesday. Prof. Oramah was speaking in Kigali at the signing of the hosting agreement for IATF2020 by the Government of Rwanda, Afreximbank and the African Union. Minister of Trade and Industry of Rwanda, Soraya Hakuziyaremye signed for the Government while Prof. Oramah signed for Afreximbank and Amb. Albert Muchanga, Commissioner for Trade and Industry of the African Union, signed for the organisation during the ceremony held at the Transform Africa Summit taking place in Kigali Oramah said that for IATF2020, which is being organized by Afreximbank in collaboration with the African Union and hosted by Rwanda, the partners had set themselves the ambitious target of attracting more than 1,000 exhibitors and hosting over 10,000 buyers and conference participants from over 50 countries. According to him, the trade fair will build on the tremendous progress made in the first Intra-African Trade Fair held in Cairo in 2018 to achieve more far-reaching results in terms of impact in promoting Intra-African trade. Oramah who noted that “52 countries have signed the AfCFTA and 22 have ratified it, paving the way for the agreement to enter into force”, said that IAATF2020 would include an IATF Trade and Investment Forum which will look at the practical challenges affecting AfCFTA implementation and provide solutions on...

With Africa’s digital economy taking off exponentially, the continent must ready itself to maximize the potential dividends of the Continental Free Trade Area agreement, panel members told a packed auditorium in Kigali at the opening of Transform Africa Summit 2019 on Tuesday. Key to this effort will be connectivity, data and digitization and innovation among others, conference attendees heard. “Africa can achieve a digital single market...It is a journey and we need to break it up into doable bits, “African Development Bank Vice-president, Private Sector, Infrastructure and Industrialization Pierre Guislain, said, adding that the European Union had demonstrated that it could be achieved. Other members of the panel Lacina Kone, Director General / CEO of Smart Africa, the conference organizers, Fatoumata Ba, CEO Janngo, Nic Rudnick, CEO Liquid Telecom Group and Elsie Kanza, Head of Africa, World Economic Forum, shared similar sentiments. This year’s summit which is themed Boosting Africa’s Digital Economy, aims to showcase success stories in the African digital economy and promote homegrown businesses, innovations, solutions and partnerships. In a special intervention from the audience, World Bank Digital Director Dr. Boutheina Guermazi said: “ICT and digital literacy is not a luxury. It is an integral part of how we view development,” adding that the foundations of the digital economy - connectivity, data and voice, would depend on a fully integrated digital infrastructure. With the ratification of the Africa Continental Free Trade Area, the possibility of new markets offer tantalizing new avenues for tech start-ups and e-businesses and a combined GDP of...

James Wani Igga, second vice-president, said that the latest innovation will make South Sudan competitive globally as it seeks investments to help its economy recover from more than five years of conflict. “The use of digitalization will help to share information, work efficiently and effectively to deliver better services to the public,” said Igga. He added that South Sudan was ready for foreign investors after setting up several projects like the one-stop border post with neighboring countries to ease the cost of doing business in the landlocked country. Anthony Lino Makana, speaker of the South Sudan parliament, said they are going to make laws that support digitalization of business in the country. “Through digitalization business people will have the need of coming to South Sudan, they can apply online, get registered and come to transact here,” Makana said. Paul Mayom Akec, minister of trade for East African Community (EAC), said that technology will improve transparency and accountability. “Modernization through information technology will improve our operation and enhance transparency and accountability in revenue collection as well as linking government sectors,” said Akec. Karthik Meda Shivaprasad, head of SIF tech company that installed the digital technology, said digitalization will bring positive results to South Sudan as it optimizes resources and enhances labor productivity. Enditem Source: Pachodo

President Paul Kagame has challenged African countries to think about issues that make hike the cost of services in Africa while also allowing the rest of the world to inspect the continent. The issues have a lot to see with lack of opening up to each other among the African countries. At Transform Africa summit taking place in Kigali, Kagame was on a panel of discussion alongside his Kenyan counterpart Uhuru Kenyatta and Malian Ibrahim Boubacar Keita. He said that in this era of digital economy, Africa has been remaining behind, which should not be an option, and, at a time the continent is talking about transformation, it is high time for Africa “to build the necessary infrastructure and skills in Africa.” This infrastructure however, should go hand in hand with an idea of African togetherness. “Collaboration is the only way for us to navigate successfully, through the complex global dynamics we have to face,” Kagame said. On this collaboration and opening up to each other, Kagame brought out a case of airspace in Africa whereby countries fail to break barriers, at the expense of the passengers. “When flying from Rwanda, why would we have to go through Poland, Brussels to make it to Bamako? One must keep asking themselves the rationale,” Kagame said adding, that it can make sense of from Kigali, someone makes a stopover in Nairobi before transiting to Bamako, but going all that far is too much. It is the same thing with telecommunication. Earlier in...

The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa has launched an online seed label verification system which will see all local seed in member states countries sell those branded with the trading bloc’s logo, in order to shield farmers from fake and uncertified products that had flooded the market. The launch, through the Alliance for Commodity Trade in Eastern and Southern Africa Seed Programme, also scored another first by introducing Comesa Regional Certificates to be issued by national seed authorities. This is also expected to boost seed trade in the 21 countries. Speaking at the Comesa Secretariat, the pedigree global strategy director, Selorm Branttie said the seed labels and certificates will promote the use of genuine seed and eventual elimination of fake seed from circulation. “This is the first time that seed certificates and verification will be done electronically, and the farmer will be able to trace the source of the seed and authenticity of the seed without difficulty,’’ Mr Branttie added. During the two-day training for seed companies on ordering, use and trading using the Comesa seed labels and certificates Mr Branttie emphasised need to eliminate the trade and use of fake seed saying it has greatly contributed to the poor performance of 80 million smallholder farmers and food insecurity in the Comesa region. According to the statement, the online seed verification system is a region wide initiative to harmonise trade in certified seed by having one common label and certification system where for every seed package that will...

President Yoweri Museveni has said market integration of Africa and political integration for strategic security will stimulate the continents prosperity and rapid economic transformation for the continent. “The modern way for prosperity is the exchange of goods and services for sale, the more buyers the better. We now have the  African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) where you can trade with anybody. East Africa is highly compatible, similar and linked. Our fraternity has not been emphasized,” he said. The President was today delivering an opportunity lecture to 17 high ranking military officials from 11 countries including USA, UK, Germany, Netherlands, Germany, Bolivia among others at Masindi State Lodge in Masindi district. The team led by Rear Admiral Ross Albon from UK Royal College of Defence Studies has been in the country for a one-week study tour of Uganda about ‘Uganda’s Geo-Politics and Economic Development’. The UPDF Chief of Training and Recruitment Major General Jim Willis Byaruhanga guided the delegation during the course of the study. Speaking about regional trade, the President said the closure of the border by neighbouring Rwanda is a ‘hiccup’ that will not slow the region down. “Even if the border is closed, trade will go on, only that it will be through smuggling. You can’t stop trade through border administration. People resort to smuggling. Others have resorted to export a lot of things to South Sudan, DR Congo, Kenya Tanzania, etc,” he said. The President said the six East African Countries have agreed to work for...