In Summary KRA reported that it had raised over 1 trillion shillings in the first seven months. This is 28.8 per cent above the revenue collected by KRA within the same 7-month period in the last financial year. Last month, the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) reported that it had raised over 1 trillion shillings in the first seven months of the 2021/2022 Financial year. The results showed that KRA is continuing with its impressive post-COVID recovery strategy as it remains on course towards surpassing its revenue target for the Financial year with five months to go. This is 28.8 per cent above the revenue collected by KRA within the same 7-month period in the last financial year. The January revenue alone increased by 28.3 per cent from 142.8 billion shillings compared to 111.3 billion shillings in the same period last financial year. This is an indication that this year’s revenue could increase at a higher rate in a very long time. One of the areas of its operations credited with the improved revenue collection is the use of enhanced technology in Customs operations, especially cargo scanning. This has strengthened multi-agency collaborations to deter smuggling at the border points leading not only to improved revenue collection but also tighter border security. KRA, working alongside other border agencies including the Immigration Department, Port Health Services, Border Police Patrol Unit, Kenya Bureau of Standards and Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Service, now boast of better inter-agency collaborations. They also enjoy seamless operations, faster clearance...

Ghana has several opportunities for investors including abundant raw materials including gold, cocoa, and oil/gas It however faces several challenges that hinder foreign direct investment, among them costly and difficult financial services and lack of government transparency Low-cost labour, a national airline with well over 100 passenger connections and growing consumer markets are key elements attracting foreign investment into Ethiopia Companies often face long lead-times importing goods and dispatching exports due to logistical bottlenecks, corruption, high land-transportation costs, and bureaucratic delays Ghana remains a favourable investment destination in Africa in 2022, despite the impact of the challenges the economy faces including the COVID-19 pandemic. Data by the US Department of State indicates that the economy has continued to rebound from the negative impact of the virus, and has made attracting foreign direct investment a priority. The economy has expanded at an average of 7 per cent since 2017 to 2020, but reduced progress amid the pandemic to only register 0.9 per cent. In 2021, the IMF said the country’s growth would rebound to 4.6 per cent in 2021 from the shocks of COVID-19, as a result of improved port activity, construction, imports, manufacturing, and credit to the private sector. “In general, Ghana’s investment prospects remain favorable, as the Government seeks to diversify and industrialize through agro-processing, mining, and manufacturing,” the Department said. Pros of doing business in Ghana  According to available data, Ghana has several opportunities for investors. These include abundant raw materials including gold, cocoa, and oil/gas. The country...

Opinion piece by Abebe Haile-Gabriel Assistant Director-General and Regional Representative for Africa Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations March 8 is marked around the world as International Women’s Day. For many women in Africa, including those in the agriculture sector, it will be just another day where invisible barriers hold them back from their true potential. At the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, we believe that inclusivity and fairness are key to achieving sustainable development in agriculture, and that this objective cannot be obtained without accounting for the central role played by women in the sector, including in agriculture markets, trade and value-chain development. The African Continental Free Trade Area or AfCFTA is a major opportunity to boost economic growth, reduce poverty, and broaden economic inclusion. We must seize this opportunity for gender equality as well. The agricultural and agribusiness market in Africa is undergoing rapid expansion, with its value estimated to reach USD 1 trillion by 2030, according to the World Bank. This represents an immense potential for Africa to boost food and non-food trade within the continent and enhance food security and resilience for all. The AfCFTA has opened up immense new market and trading opportunities to capitalize on this potential. The agreement, signed by 54 African Union member states and covering a market of 1.2 billion consumers, establishes the largest free-trade area in the world since the creation of the World Trade Organization almost 30 years ago. The agreement creates a regional single market...

Summary Amani Abou-Zeid, the commissioner for Infrastructure and Energy at the African Union Commission, has urged countries to embrace transnational projects to facilitate the movement of cargo, noting that no meaningful development can take place without significant investment in infrastructure. The African Union High Representative for Infrastructure Development Raila Odinga noted that while countries have increased budgetary allocations to infrastructure projects, funding from private and institutional investors was missing to bridge the continent’s infrastructure deficit. Lack of infrastructure is a bigger hurdle to trade within Africa than uncertain non-tariff barriers, eating up close to 40 percent of logistics expenses and affecting free movement of goods, officials have warned. Amani Abou-Zeid, the commissioner for Infrastructure and Energy at the African Union Commission, has urged countries to embrace transnational projects to facilitate the movement of cargo, noting that no meaningful development can take place without significant investment in infrastructure. “We need to invest in infrastructure to boost our intra-trade on the continent. This can only be achieved by increasing budgetary allocation toward infrastructure projects,” said Ms Zeid in a speech during the official launch of the Programme For Infrastructure Development in Africa (Pida) Week in Nairobi, organised by the African Union Development Agency (Auda)-Nepad. The African Union High Representative for Infrastructure Development Raila Odinga noted that while countries have increased budgetary allocations to infrastructure projects, funding from private and institutional investors was missing to bridge the continent’s infrastructure deficit. Mr Odinga said Covid-19 had also negatively impacted cross-border trade as AU members...

Summary Waiting times at the border stations are commonly used as an indicator of trade facilitation performance. All registered products require a local certificate of conformity to be permitted into the country. Kebs shall register products based on test reports from laboratories accredited to ISO/IEC 17025, product certification by the National Standards Body and/or under IECEE scheme. The import, export and transit of goods and the means of transporting them are subjected to national and international regulations. Compliance with these regulations is checked and enforced when the goods arrive in the country of transit or destination. In most countries, this is at the border crossings or stations close to the geographical boundary of the country. Unfortunately, traders, their representatives and drivers in most cases are forced to undertake multiple formalities at border crossings to release and clear the goods. At times this becomes a lengthy or speedy process depending on the organisation of the border crossings, the procedures in place and management of those formalities. As a result, delays have become common, with pictures of endless lines of waiting trucks depicting trade barriers, particularly in developing countries in Africa. Waiting times at the border stations are commonly used as an indicator of trade facilitation performance. However, the delays and incalculable timelines harm transit traffic and cross border trade. They cause unpredictable delivery times for traders and make it difficult for them to participate in a time-sensitive logistics chain of business with the producer and cargo owner. Uncertain timelines also increase...

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Subregional office for Eastern Africa and Agricycle Global Inc. agreed to work together in nurturing youth groups in Kenya, and refugees and host communities in Uganda in the development of fruit and vegetable value-chains. Areas of collaboration include capacity development for youth on fruit and vegetable value chain development; od safety standards and fruit and vegetable-related agribusiness; documentation of youth empowerment business models; transfer of knowledge and skills for adoption of technologies and equipment for fruit drying; and publishing of best practices. Through this agreement, targeted beneficiaries will improve their access to market, as well as technology, such as solar driers/ dehydrators, and gain capacity development trainings on quality control of their produce. These interventions will eventually help them to improve their incomes and livelihoods, contributing to decent rural (youth) employment and reduction of food waste and loss. Women and youth have been historically excluded/ discriminated against in the agricultural value-chain even though they have an important role to play in the agri-food systems Signing the agreement, David Phiri, FAO Subregional Coordinator for Eastern Africa and Representative to the African Union and United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, noted that youth employment in the food and agriculture sector in the subregion was a key area of focus given that youth constituted a large segment of the population. “In order to address issues such as rural exodus, unemployment, and food and nutrition insecurity, it is critical to engage and invest in...

THE government has challenged the private sector to produce high quality goods at low costs to compete in the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) market. Deputy Minister for Investment, Industry and Trade, Mr Exaud Kigahe made the remarks on Monday at the opening of a three-day workshop on a capacity building programme for the private sector in Dar es Salaam to grasp AfCFTA opportunities. “This market is likely to create trade competition, so I urge you to ensure that we continue to produce high quality products that will be able to enter other African countries and encourage market competition,” he said. The workshop was organised by TradeMark Africa. He said the government is committed to creating a friendly environment by ensuring the availability of reliable and affordable electricity which is fundamental in producing goods at low cost. He also said the government is in the process of conducting a comprehensive analysis of the AfCFTA agreement on the country’s economy and preparing the national AfCFTA charter. “Recognizing the importance of the AfCFTA agreement, the government has engaged various experts to obtain information and stakeholders views on the implementation of the agreement,” said Kigahe. He added, “The strategy will help us to organize ourselves as a country to ensure that we take full advantage of the AfCFTA agreement opportunities,” He said the AfCFTA market was an opportunity that could be used by Tanzanians to attract investors who would produce their products and sell them on the local market and the AfCFTA...

MBABANE - Secretary General of COMESA Chileshe Mpundu Kapwepwe is said to have signed the Protocol on Relations between the African Union (AU) and the Regional Economic Communities (RECs). Eswatini is among the 21 member States of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA). According to a correspondence from COMESA, the Protocol is meant to consolidate relations with the continental mother body. Witnessed by the Chairperson of the African Union Commission Moussa Faki Mahamat and East African Community (EAC) Secretary General Dr. Peter Mutuku Mathuki, the signing ceremony took place on February 4 this year at the AU Headquarters in Addis Ababa. The Protocol aims to, among other things; formalise, consolidate and promote closer cooperation among the RECS and between them and the AU through coordination and harmonisation of their policies, measures, programmes and activities in all fields and sectors in line with the principle of subsidiarity and complementarity. Signed Other Regional Economic Communities that have already signed the Protocol include the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS), the Community of Sahel-Saharian States (CENSAD) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC). This Protocol entered into force on November 10 last year after being signed by the Chairperson of the Commission and three Chief Executives of three Regional Economic Communities. Kapwepwe was in Ethiopia attending the 40th Ordinary Session of the Executive Council and the 35th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union. The Assembly of Heads of State and...

Africa has long been a complex market for many global businesses. Trade and commerce have been fragmented across its 54 countries, with currencies, consumer insights and regulations specific to each. At the local level, consumers have often bought and sold things in open air markets, with cash or even barter of mobile phone minutes. But a recent pan-African trade deal has begun to streamline the African market, and technologies are giving consumers and businesses new on-ramps. The result? The continent and its 1.5 billion are more accessible than ever. Aubrey Hruby has advised companies in and out of Africa for the past two decades and is a senior fellow at the Africa Center at The Atlantic Council, a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the co-author of an award-winning book, The Next Africa. In this month’s Signal Conversation, Hruby shared insights on how commerce is evolving and the many opportunities for businesses to engage in what is now the world’s fastest growing region. Transcript John Battelle Welcome to another Signal Conversation. I’m very excited about this one. We have with us Aubrey Hruby, who is an advisor to companies with interest in African markets, working mainly with African policymakers and Fortune 500 companies across 20 distinct African markets. She’s a senior fellow at the Africa Center at The Atlantic Council, a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the co-author of an award-winning book The Next Africa. Welcome, Aubrey. So good to have you here. Aubrey Hruby Thank you, John....

With the Covid-induced recession subsiding as vaccination rates increase, there was great hope for the AfCFTA to show that it could live up to its hype. So, what has worked? Since trading began on 1 January, some intra-African trade under AfCFTA arrangements based on anecdotal evidence has taken place, including alcoholic beverages and cosmetic products (recent data on trade flows are not yet fully available). Although intra-African agricultural trade remains below 20% compared to more than 60% for Europe and Asia, trade is projected to grow once negotiations have come to an end and trade barriers are progressively rolled back. To date, 42 out of 55 African countries have ratified the agreement, and 88% of the negotiations on product-specific rules of origin have been concluded, covering more than 70% of intra-African trade according to the AfCFTA Secretariat in 2021. However, a significant shortcoming of the agreement is that many nutrition-sensitive goods may not be fully liberalised or progressively liberalised over longer periods, as indicated by ongoing negotiations on tariff offers. Examples of protected goods include live animals, meat, fish, milk and dairy products, fruit and vegetables, coffee, tea, spices, oilseeds and sugars. Africa’s agricultural commodities and raw materials have traditionally dominated trade with the rest of the world (cocoa, coffee, cotton, tobacco and spices) with a mix of processed goods (cane and beet sugar, prepared or preserved tunas, wine and other food preparations). For the AfCFTA to reach its full potential by exploiting the full range of the agri-food value...