South Sudan has been admitted into the Common Market for Eastern and South Africa (Comesa) member states just few days after the country was also admitted into the East African Community (EAC). Comesa Secretary General Sindiso Ngwenya said South Sudan pushed to join the Comesa Regional Customs Transit Guarantee (RCTG) carnet scheme. “We are pleased to announce that following the Comesa’s engagement at the highest level, the government of South Sudan has joined the RCTG Scheme,” Ngwenya said at a signing ceremony in Mombasa on Thursday. The Comesa RCTG carnet scheme is a custom transit regime designed to facilitate movement of goods under the customs seals in the Comesa region to provide the required customs security and guarantee to the transit countries. Ngwenya said the RCTG carnet scheme has recorded encouraging achievement since commencement of operations in 2012 and member states and stakeholders participating in the scheme are deriving benefits from savings in the cost of cargo transport. South Sudan wrote to Comesa on April 22, designating Speed Insurance Company as its National Surety and signed an Inter-Surety Agreement. “On the behalf of Comesa and on my own behalf, I would like to welcome South Sudan to the RCTG Scheme,” said the Comesa top official. South Sudan Director General for External Trade at the Ministry of Trade, Stephen Matatia said they are happy that they are now part of the Comesa economic regional block. “We are glad that today we have made it to Comesa RCTG Scheme,” said Matatia. Comesa...

Over the weekend, Camp Kigali was a hive of activity in readiness to host the World Economic Forum for Africa which is set to kick off on Wednesday this week. The forum will convene over 1500 delegates from Africa and beyond under the theme ‘Connecting Africa’s Resources through Digital Transformation.’ In the build up to the conference, The New Times Collins Mwai caught up with The Chief Executive Officer of Rwanda Development Board, Francis Gatare for insights to the oncoming forum. Below are the excerpts: Is Kigali ready for the Forum? The process to host the world economic forum is not an overnight event; it is a process that started about 2 years ago. When Rwanda was approached to host the forum and accepted, we were ready. From the highest levels of leadership in the country, a commitment was made that Rwanda would be ready to host. From that time, the process to put in place mechanisms to host the forum has been unfolding rather than readiness to host it. The theme is somewhat complex to an ordinary audience, what are some of the deliberations that will be held under the theme? The overall theme for the forum for this year actually started during the World Economic Forum held in Davos in January, ‘The Fourth Industrial Revolution’. When the theme for World economic forum for Africa was being streamlined, there was an understanding of the over arching theme for the forum. It sought to inform how Africa can participate in...

The government and key stakeholders of Dar es Salaam port have drawn up a plan to rescue the port in the wake of a steep decline in cargo traffic. Measures proposed include the scrapping of Value Added Tax (VAT) on transit goods. The plan is aimed at turning around the port’s fortunes and making it the most competitive in the region. Stakeholders met recently behind closed doors to prepare a blueprint in response to a looming crisis following the diverting of cargo from the Central Corridor. They agreed to take corrective measures that would help retain customers, bring back those who had abandoned the port and attract new ones. Participants in the meeting held at the port manager’s office included representatives from the Inspector General of Police’s office, Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA), Tanzania Zambia Railway Authority (Tazara) and Tanzania Railways Limited. Others were the Tanzania Freight Forwarders Association, Tanzania Shipping Agents Association, Central Corridor Transit Transport Facilitation Agency, Tanzania Truck Owners Association (Tatoa) and Transporters Association of Tanzania (TAT). Also in attendance were officials of the Surface and Marine Transport Regulatory Authority. Participants were briefed on worrying statistics showing a significant fall in cargo traffic, which, according to the Tanzania Ports Authority (TPA), could degenerate into a serious national crisis if urgent measures are not taken. Cargo traffic through the port dropped by 13.3 per cent in March, this year, compared to the same period last year. Cargo to and from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Zambia dropped...

The Kenya International Freight Forwarders Association (KIFWA) has called for the immediate withdrawal of the newly introduced tax and cargo clearing system where tax meant for the East African Community members is collected in Mombasa through the Single Customs Territory (SCT). Led by KIFWA Chairman William Ojonyo, the members lamented that in the last four weeks, they have incurred losses as they are unable to clear goods from the port after the government included vehicles and steel to be taxed and cleared using the Ugandan Asycuda system. Out of the 1,500 registered clearing agents in the country, only 139 were trained on the new system but only 5 per cent who are multinational companies, have access to the system password creating delays in clearing and congestion at the port. This follows the government’s decision to have vehicles and steel which form a bulk of the exports to Uganda, taxed and cleared using the new taxation system Asycuda a month ago, though the system was introduced late last year for bulk items like food stuff. Ojonyo has claimed that the Ugandan government through Uganda Revenue Authority (URA), is not interested in making business easy for the Kenyan businessmen as they are reluctant to train more agents yet if one makes a mistake with the system they are forced to pay a fine of 300 dollars or an estimated Ksh 30,000. They are now pleading with the government to halt the new system and revert all business to KRA’s Simba System until all agents...

Kampala — Tanzanian High Commissioner Ladislaus Komba has launched the registration of participants in the Afrika Mashariki Fest (AMF) half marathon, which will take place on May 29. The run will start and end at Kololo Independence Grounds. While addressing the press after the launch on Sunday at Nakumatt Acacia Mall in Kololo, Kampala, Dr Komba, who signed up for the 10km run, said the launch was meant to inaugurate the half marathon for the Afrika Masariki Fest initiated by the youth to promote the East African Community (EAC) integration. "The aim is to promote awareness, understanding and support our leaders in the integration process and to me, any process that is aimed towards the integration of our countries is welcome and I am proud to be part of it," he said. Dr Komba further said the Afrika Mashariki Fest (AMF) initiative is also intended to promote youth development and job opportunities and will also focus on protection and conservation of Lake Victoria, the region's largest water body. The AMF chief executive, Mr Kisembo Ronex Tendo, while addressing the press at the launch, said the event is a non-partisan voluntary youth platform that seeks to promote the regional integration of the six EAC member states. "We, therefore, seek to engage them across the region to embrace the EAC integration process through art, sports and civil society advocacy as our platforms," he said. Key athletes invited He said the run is expected to involve elite athletes with 10 from Addis Ababa,...

That Tanzania beat out Kenya to carry Uganda's oil to international markets owes much to economic and security concerns, but also to plans for regional integration. Plans for a 1,410-kilometre heated pipeline from Hoima in western Uganda to Tanzania's deep water port at Tanga have been chosen to carry Uganda's oil to international markets, over the initially favoured 'northern route' through Kenya. Heavy lobbying by international oil companies, changes in regional politics and Kenya's fragile security situation seem to be major reasons behind Kampala's change of heart. But by engaging a member long seen as a hindrance to integration efforts, a cross-border project with Tanzania could also help spur the development of the East African Community (EAC). How the Kenya deal fell through On 10 August 2015, the presidents of Uganda and Kenya publically agreed to jointly develop a pipeline, depending on Kenya meeting a number of conditions. The choice of the 'northern route' via Hoima-Lokichar-Lamu was portrayed as a contribution towards closer East African integration - a key political goal of Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni. The proposed pipeline was also politically important for Kenya's government, as it would have helped to justify the huge $25 billion cost of the Lamu Port-South Sudan-Ethiopia Transport Corridor (LAPSSET) development - a flagship project for Kenya's President Uhuru Kenyatta, holding increased significance in a pre-election year. But progress on the Hoima-Lokichar-Lamu pipeline was contingent on Kenyan guarantees, on the security of the pipeline within Kenya, project financing, swift implementation and low tariffs. Perhaps...

Tanzania and Rwanda have agreed to form a joint implementation committee (JIC) to closely monitor important areas of bilateral relations between the two countries that were agreed in the just concluded 14th session of the Joint Permanent Commission (JPC). The JIC will be led by permanent secretaries in the foreign ministries from both countries and will be meeting in every quarter of each year, according to Head of Communications in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, East African, Regional and International Cooperation, Ms Mindi Kasiga. The two-day session of the JPC meeting, which ended on Sunday, was held in the resort town of Rubavu in the Western Province of Rwanda. Among other issues, the JPC agreed to bolster bilateral ties in various key sectors, including strengthening relationship in the aviation sector, especially between the two countries' national airlines--Rwandair and Air Tanzania Company Limited (ATCL). The meeting also agreed to fast-track infrastructure development on the central corridor, which combines road and railway network, as an essential trade and transport route, linking the two countries with neighbouring Burundi, Uganda and the eastern part of Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Ms Kasiga, who was addressing a news conference in Dar es Salaam, said the meeting also agreed to increase the pace on the construction of the envisaged multi-trillion shilling standard gauge central railway line project. The 14th JPC meeting came following the directives issued by President John Magufuli and his Rwandan counterpart Paul Kagame in Kigali last month during Dr Magufuli's maiden trip outside the...

Arusha — East African Community (EAC) is facing a precarious financial situation and the new secretary general, Mr Liberat Mfumukeko, has put workers at the headquarters on notice, telling them to get ready for drastic changes. Speaking at a welcoming party organised at an Arusha hotel last week, Mr Mfumukeko said owing to the alarming financial state the regional body was going through, he was forced to take radical changes for the organ to survive. He made it clear that the EAC secretariat was operating on a shoestring budget because its donors, who accounted for about 70 per cent of its budget, had lagged behind in fulfilling their promises by at least 30 per cent. Though he is generally regarded as a less talkative person, the maiden speech the newly appointed East African Community (EAC) Secretary General gave painted him as a no nonsense person geared towards bringing much-needed changes on the way the EAC Secretariat and the community in general operates. Among major priorities, Mr Mfumukeko said he would concentrate on and push for full implementation of protocols and agreements signed or ratified by the EAC partner states, specifically the Customs Union, the Common Market and the East African Monetary Union protocols. He also made it clear that he favoured fast-tracking the integration of South Sudan, a new member of the bloc, into activities, programmes and projects of the EAC. At the same time, he said during his welcoming party by the staff of the community that he would...

Zanzibar — Tanzania Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture (TCCIA) and its isles counterpart, Zanzibar National Chamber of Commerce Industry and Agriculture (ZNCCIA) sealed an agreement to partner in promoting trade. The partner institutions signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) at ZNCCIA offices here to cement their relation, at a ceremony graced by Zanzibar Minister of Trade, Industries and Marketing Amina Salum Ali. "We need to strengthen collaboration and have one voice in demanding changes in promotion of trade in the country, targeting bigger EAC, SADC and international markets," said Ambassador Ali. She described the partnership of the two institutions as an indication of increased trade awareness, with focus on quality and standard goods in the market. The minister asked the chambers' members to support government plans to promote businesses in the country through strengthened Public Private Partnership (PPP), thanking Trademark East Africa (TMA) for initiating and supporting the MoU. ZNCCIA Executive Director Munira Said and her TCCIA counterpart Magdalena Mkocha signed and exchanged documents, promising to share experiences in the interest of members and trade sector. Country Director-TMA, Dr Joshepat Kweka, said that he was happy to witness the development, "Which is just the start of our long journey of support to the chambers. It is good for the chambers to increase business as we look forward to support advocacy, logistics and export orientated businesses." He asked the chambers to set common goals of increasing trade within Tanzania and East Africa, and promoting exports to current and new markets....

TradeMark Africa (TMA) has launched a Fund worth Rwf 6 billion (USD 7.6 million) to support business with innovative projects that will enhance the transport and logistics sector in East Africa. This is the second edition of the Fund dubbed the Logistics Innovation for Trade Challenge Fund (LIFT). It was first established in in 2012, with nine projects funded to the tune of USD 10.9 million. According to Anataria Karimba from TMA-Rwanda, this is a chance for private businesses to get financing for their ideas that will reduce transport costs and boost trade in the region. “This is an opportunity that all private sector firms should jump at. All it requires is innovative ideas that can facilitate lower costs in transport and logistics,” Karimba told The New Times. The LIFT Fund aims to reduce investment risk in transformative technologies that will make a difference to the region’s trade and logistics efficiency. To benefit from the Fund, companies in logistics are required to submit their proposals with each successful project legible for grants between $150,000 and $1 million. The companies will also be required to match at least 50 per cent of project value. While speaking to The New Times, Karimba called on Rwandan businesses to submit their applications. Her call was motivated by the fact that during the first round, no Rwandan business benefited from the fund. Of the nine successful projects, four were from Kenya, three from Uganda and two from Tanzania. “I think one of the biggest challenges...