It is consternating that the controversy arising from the implementation of the East African Community Vehicle Load Control Act of 2016 is burgeoning out of proportion in Tanzania. Among other provisions, the legislation sets maximum limits for road vehicle axle loads, as well as weight of the vehicles themselves. In the event, vehicles with a gross minimum weight of 3,500 kilogrammes must go through road weighbridge stations that are dotted all over the region’s trunk roads. Operators of load-carrying vehicles which contravene the load control statute become liable to the stipulated maximum fine of $15,000 or a three-year term in jail – or to both the fine and imprisonment. There are other statutory stipulations which must also be complied with to avoid the penalties. Among them is the transportation of ‘abnormal’ loads that can only be conveyed on public roads with prior written permission and other conditions/terms issued by the relevant authorities. ‘Abnormal loads’ include – but are not limited to – ‘awkward loads, hazardous loads, super loads and unstable loads.’ The East African Community Vehicle Load Control Act has been formally adopted by five of the six EAC member nations of Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, South Sudan and Tanzania, where it takes precedence over domestic laws on the subject-matter. Burundi is the lone exception to that law, so to speak.   Pros and cons of the new legislation Effective implementation of the legislation by the relevant authorities in the five EAC member nations is intended to protect and preserve trunk...

The old metre-gauge railway built by the British more than 100 years ago, was derisively described as a ‘lunatic express’ for its meandering journey to nowhere in particular. Its replacement, the modern Standard Gauge Railway (SGR), has not earned such a singular moniker but its critics have described it as a ‘white elephant.’ And data seems to support them. The SGR has but one chief role - to haul all sorts of imported goods from the port of Mombasa via Nairobi to other parts of the country or the neighbouring states. Kenya’s exports that can be transported on rail are so meagre that if they alone were to be evacuated on the line the job would be done in less than a week. As the SGR freight service enters its second year, Kenya Railways Corporation, the authority tasked with managing the rail, might need to watch out for the challenges that brought the old track to its knees. Chief among the challenges the SGR is staring at, include lack of business, which saw wagons on the old railway return to the port of Mombasa empty. Such capacity, which can be achieved through increased productivity of the agricultural and manufacturing sectors, remains far out of reach. This is even as the clock continues to tick towards the first interest payment for the Sh400 billion Chinese-funded railway by the end of this year. Moreover, trucks which cannibalised the old railway, are yet to be vanquished and continue to give the faster SGR...

Kenya Railways Corporation and the Chinese company contracted to build Phase 2A of the Nairobi-Naivasha Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) appear to have different views on the future of the project. The contractor- China Communications Construction Company (CCCC) indicated last week that low compensation of landowners is set to delay the completion of the project. It said trials on the railway line ought to have started this month running into March with testing of locomotives set for April but delays in accessing the Ongata Rongai-Ngong stretch have affected the timelines. “By July we were supposed to be handing over but now the plans have been affected,” said Jasper Liu, assistant manager-public relations and co-operation department at CCCC. Liu who spoke to reporters during a tour of the project cautioned that completion could be pushed to December or even further depending on when the land rows will be resolved. However, Kenya Railways Acting Managing Director Philip Mainga on Friday assured of timely completion, even as he acknowledged that the project experienced some challenges in some sections of the corridor due to land acquisition and compensation of Project Affected Persons (PAPs).  He said construction of SGR Phase 2A is on schedule and will be completed by May 30. He dismissed concerns by the contractor that the project could delay over compensation rows. Commence operations Mainga said the project which is 88 per cent complete is set to be launched on May 31, and commence operations on June 1, this year. This contradicts the contractor...

President John Magufuli's government has embarked on a mandate to ensure that Tanzania attains a middle-income economy by 2025. He has therefore laid down strategies in a 2016/17 - 2020/21 Five Year Development Plan. The plan, dubbed 'Nurturing Industrialization for Economic Transformation and Human Development' pays particular attention to growth and transformation and poverty reduction. The Exchange has compiled some of the major projects on the president's to do list. They include: Reviving the National carrier The government revived the defunct Air Tanzania by injecting over 1 trillion shillings ($434.79 million) aimed at revamping the carrier's fleet. Two bombardier Q400s, a Dash 8-300, a Boeing 787-8 and an Airbus A220-300 are among the aircraft purchased during the revival. The president appointed new management of the carrier just to show how determined the government was to achieve the projected goals as laid in the 2016/17-2020/21 Five Year Plan. The Air Tanzania Company Limited (ATCL) extended routes to unexploited local destinations including Iringa, Mpanda, Tanga and Shinyanga which will most definitely boost the carrier's revenues. The carrier is also in the final stages of reviving its revoked International Air Transport Association (IATA) membership as it plans to further exploit international markets. Plans are underway to introduce thrice a week (Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday) flights to China via Thailand by next month, targeting Guangzhou and Bangkok which are major business hubs. This is aimed at creating ease and raising the number of locals that visit these centers for business purposes as well as...

The progress of Africa’s economy over the last decade has been remarkable. In 2018, seven African nations – Ethiopia, Ghana, Tanzania, Senegal, Morocco, Ivory Coast and Djibouti, – feature in the fastest-growing economies in the world. The World Bank estimates economic growth in the Sub-Saharan regions to bulk out to a 3.6 percent average in 2019-20. Global management consultants, McKinsey & Company report the region is showing the same signs as China before its explosive growth. Rapid urbanization and business-friendly reforms are helping to fuel economic growth. With consumer spending expected to hit $25 trillion by 2025, Africa’s emerging markets present excellent opportunities for international trade, mergers and acquisitions. There is certainly cause for optimism and as key industries drive economic growth, create more jobs and reduce poverty. African nations can look forward to improved infrastructure, better housing and a higher standard of living. The future looks bright for Africa. As economies continue, there will be more scope to improve transportation networks, roads and housing. This will create more opportunities for entrepreneurs and skilled workers in key industries and raise living standards across the continent. Source: African Daily Voice

In December 2018, we reported that Alibaba and the Rwanda Development Board (RDB) were organising a unique e-Founders Fellowship Program for Rwandan entrepreneurs. According to the notice from RDB, the program was slated to kickstart in February this year. But, we have learnt that Alibaba is extending – what is now called Alibaba Netpreneur Training – to the rest of the East African region. “The Alibaba Netpreneur Training Rwanda program will welcome entrepreneurs and business leaders who currently operate in the Rwandan market, as well as those from the wider East African community,” reads part of the email that Digest Africa received. The consideration for businesses in the rest of East Africa is limited to those “who show actionable interest in expanding into the Rwandan market”. According to Alibaba, the goal of the programme is to help African entrepreneurs learn more about the company’s story. “The Alibaba Business School has created the Alibaba Netpreneur Training program to share the story and takeaways of Alibaba’s growth with entrepreneurs and business leaders around the world. We hope to inspire more businesses to embrace [the] digital economy, creating more opportunities for inclusive growth around the world.” In the previous announcement, the first batch dates were from 16th to 27th February 2019, which has since been adjusted to accommodate the new applicants. The program will, thus, take place from March 2nd-13th 2019 in Hangzhou, China while the new deadline for application is January 20, 2019. “Entrepreneurs and business leaders will have the opportunity to spend ten days...

President Paul Kagame has said that Africa needs to move out of being a stock for only raw materials and people, by adding more value to its resources. “Africa cannot just be a source of raw things. In fact, we have become even a source of raw people. We need to add value. We can do that with partnerships we can forge between Africa and Japan, Rwanda and Japan but we have to always be guided by this understanding,” said President Kagame to Japanese investors on Wednesday. The president who is on a two-day working visit to the Asian country with First Lady Jeannette Kagame, spoke to investors at Rwanda-Japan Business Forum organized by the Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO) in collaboration with Rwandan Embassy in Japan. For more than a decade, Rwanda’s economy has exhibited a steady 8% annual growth, while investments also continue to register significant increase. Going by the 2018 figures released by Rwanda development Board (RDB) – the country’s investments caretaker, in the last 8 years, investments in Rwanda jumped from $398 million in 2010 to slightly over $2.006 billion in 2018. Addressing the forum, President Kagame told investors that: “Much has been said about the excellent cooperation between Rwanda and Japan, and the good investment prospects in Rwanda including from those who are actually doing work in Rwanda. My job is simple and but also important: To welcome you and encourage you to do more business in and with Rwanda.” As of 2017, Rwanda’s trade...

The East African Community (EAC) is under fire for non-integration of investments in its Information Technology (IT) sector, leading to higher costs. A host of organs and institutions of the regional organisation have continued to acquire and maintain IT applications independent of each other without being centrally done. This, according to the recently released report of the Committee of Accounts of the East African Legislative Assembly (Eala), has led to wastage of resources. “The systems are not integrated to share information between them and also with external critical systems such as the banking systems to ease transactions involving Electronic Funds Transfer,” it pointed out. Currently, the EAC headquarters in Arusha has over 17 IT systems, sourced through different development partners and managed by different departments, units and projects. The report cited there were $8,277,904 investments made by the Community in the IT equipment in 2016/17 financial year. However, the lawmakers claimed that the acquisition process was not transparent. “Management of IT investments or solutions was carried out by respective departments that acquired them without the IT department’s control,” stated the report, which was availed to The Citizen. The aforementioned money was spent on the purchase of the IT intangible assets and computer, and telecommunication equipment. It excluded expenditure related to maintenance, licensing and training. They noted without proper tracking and recording of the IT investments, the department may not be in a position to adequately assess the returns. “Without a structured IT investments approach strategy, it will be difficult for...

The East African passport is a recent electronic travel document that has replaced the ordinary country passport, as the minimum travel document required to travel around the world if you reside within East Africa. Well, the African Union has also unveiled plans to develop a continental passport that will bind all states with 1 passport. Through a joint decision that was recently pitched to the board in 2016, the African Union delegates have decided to venture into the union passport solution as the East African Community finalized on a joint electronic passport for Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania and other member states. A single passport is one of the African Union goals mainly focused on making citizen movements easy and promoting cross-continent trade to fuel more economic growth throughout. As much as USA doubles as the biggest borderless country given the fact that many states were combined into 1, a successful single passport for Africa could be the first step towards making the black continent greatest in the world. According to the African Union chairperson, Moussa Faki Mahamat, the African passport projected design will be one of the key presentations during the 32nd AU summit later next month (Februay 2019). However, we are not sure whether the African passport will work in conjunction with the regional versions like the East African passport or it will be a superior version required for inland travels. Hence, we shall be encroaching on the presence of this yet to be unveiled passport with procedures of how you...

“You don’t negotiate with China !” I was quickly told when I started interviewing African public servants about their infrastructure deals with Beijing. There is a widespread view in Africa that you accept whatever terms are offered, for fear that the money might go somewhere else instead. China is the leading infrastructure finance provider on the continent – as demonstrated by a recent pledge of US$60 billion (£47 billion), most of which is for infrastructure projects. Big projects on the slate include hydropower plants in Angola and Guinea, an oil refinery in Nigeria, and a new city in Egypt. Yet, when you look closely at what happens on the ground, some African countries are much better at negotiating with the Chinese than others. Railway projects in East Africa appear to be a good example. In Kenya, the Standard Gauge Railway is the largest infrastructure project since independence from Britain in 1963. China Eximbank provided most of the finance for the first phase – 472 kilometres of track between Nairobi and Mombasa – at a cost of US$3.2 billion. In neighbouring Ethiopia, an electric train line from Addis Ababa to Djibouti, which is also Chinese-financed, opened two years ago. The cost for this more expensive type of railway was US$3.4 billion – for 756 kilometres. Kenya claims that its railway cost more for reasons like the terrain and the need to carry higher volumes of cargo. At the same time, however, many believe other issues to have been at play –...