Experts attending the second high-level East African Manufacturing Business Summit and Exhibition (EAMBS) held in Rwanda’s capital city Kigali said Wednesday that innovation is key for the East Africa manufacturing sector to compete globally. “We have to understand that our industries are operating in a global context, in an open globalized market place, and that is not going to change. We have to be innovative and work on our efficiencies. We should be able to produce high quality products that are competitive at international markets,” said Ali Mafuruki, board chair of Trade Mark East Africa. He added that regional economies should strategically position themselves in the global business environment through producing locally made products that are price competitive. Rwanda hosts the forum from May 23 to 25, 2017 dubbed “harnessing the Manufacturing Potential for Sustainable Economic Growth”. The three-day meeting includes an exhibition where investors, enterprises, researchers and academia will collectively showcase new products and services as well as exhibit the latest advances in manufacturing technology and innovation, particularly those with relevance to Small Medium Enterprises. Lilian Awinja, executive director of East African Business Council (EABC), called for innovative strategies that will raise competitiveness levels and expand the region’s manufacturing and export base. “Innovations are now shaping the business environment. We need to add value to products produced in EAC. Our regional industries can now begin to raise manufacturing output and increase its share of global trade and production,” she added. Mukhisa Kituyi, secretary-general of United Nations Conference on Trade...

Arusha — The East African Community (EAC) says it will go ahead with its annual secretary-general's forum in Bujumbura, Burundi, which will kick off tomorrow despite a boycott by a regional umbrella body of civil society organisations. Officials of the secretariat said yesterday that preparations for the two-day event were progressing well and were not bothered by threats from the East African Civil Society Organisations Forum (EACSOF). "We are not bothered at all. Officials of the organisation or their partners can attend the meeting or not. It is up to those invited to turn up or not," one of them told The Citizen on the condition of anonymity. EACSOF, an umbrella body of civil society organisations with an observer status to the EAC, said last week that its members would boycott this year's forum in Burundi for security concerns. In a letter sent to the EAC secretary-general Liberat Mfumukeko said they would keep away from the Bujumbura event to protest against alleged human rights abuses against members of CSOs in Burundi, some of who had been forced into exile. EACSOF president Marie Ingabire added that it was also concerned by the security situation in Burundi, where more than 400 people were killed during the 2015/16 political chaos. However, EAC officials insisted that the meeting would be attended by members of non-governmental organisations, professional bodies, universities, representatives from partner states, EAC organs and institutions. One official cautioned that EAC would not like to be drawn into frosty relations between Burundi and...

Kenya no longer faces possible loss of Agoa trade benefits, US officials announced on Tuesday. However, three other East African Community member states -- Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda -- must undergo an assessment of their Agoa eligibility status, Washington's top trade agency affirmed. The assessment could result in their ejection from the preferential trade programme. A review of Kenya's inclusion in the African Growth and Opportunity Act "is not warranted at this time," the Office of the US Trade Representative said in a notice published in a federal government gazette. It cited "recent actions Kenya has taken, including reversing tariff increases, effective July 1, 2017, and committing not to ban imports of used clothing through policy measures that are more trade-restrictive than necessary to protect human health." The US trade office added that it "will continue to monitor Kenya's actions to ensure that Kenya follows through on its commitments." The US decision to spare Kenya from a process that would have jeopardised the country's 66,000 Agoa-related jobs "is, no doubt, a victory for Kenya's trade diplomacy," said Abdirizak Musa, an official in Nairobi's embassy in Washington. Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda still risk loss of their Agoa benefits due to their ongoing commitment to a March 2016 EAC decision to phase in a ban on imports of used clothing and footwear from the US. The EAC countries, including Kenya, were named in a petition filed three months ago by a US-based recycled textiles association alleging that the joint move to bar...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Trade Representative said on Tuesday it was reviewing trade benefits to Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) after a complaint by U.S. interests about an East African ban on imports of used clothing. USTR said the "out-of-cycle" review was in response to a petition filed by the Secondary Materials and Recycled Textiles Association (SMART), which complained that the ban "imposed significant hardship" on the U.S. used-clothing industry and violated AGOA rules. "Through the out-of-cycle review, USTR and trade-related agencies will assess the allegations contained within the SMART petition and review whether Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda are adhering to AGOA's eligibility requirements," USTR said in a statement. The move follows a decision by the six-nation East African Community - Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania and South Sudan - to fully ban imported second-hand clothes and shoes by 2019, arguing it would help member countries boost domestic clothes manufacturing. The USTR did not elaborate on why the three countries were singled out for review. The AGOA trade program provides eligible sub-Saharan countries duty-free access to the United States on condition they meet certain statutory eligibility requirements, including eliminating barriers to U.S. trade and investment, among others. U.S. AGOA imports from Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda totaled $43 million in 2016, up from $33 million in 2015, according to the USTR. U.S. exports to Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda were $281 million in 2016, up from $257 million the year before, it said. Source:...

The African continent was the second fastest growing economy in the world behind South Asia in 2016. According to results shared at the African Development Bank (AfDB) Group’s Annual Meetings in 2017, East Africa in particular deserves the lion’s share of the credit for the continent’s performance. East Africa was the best sub-regional performer, with growth rising by 5.3% in real terms last year, followed by North Africa at 3.3%, Southern Africa at 1.1%, Central Africa at 0.8%, and West Africa at 0.4%. The AfDB presentation stated that three of the top five fastest growing countries on the continent were from East Africa as well. They were Ethiopia, Tanzania, and Djibouti and their economic output rose by 8%, 7.2%, and 6.3% respectively. Rounding off the top five was Cote d’Ivoire (8.4%) and Senegal (6.7%). The East African Community The East African Community (EAC) is a group of six nations – Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda. It provides a common market for the member countries to share goods and resources. The East African Legislative Assembly recently passed a $110.1 million budget for fiscal year 2017-18. This was an 8% rise from the previous year ending in June. The region has been trying to push the implementation of the EAC Common Market Protocol with a special focus on free movement of labor across member nations. If successful, the EAC will set an example for the rest of Africa and help nations with less resources to get the support they need locally...

The passion with which our president supports the integration of Africa and East Africa is amazing. Africa is so balkanized with miniscule individual country markets that can never create a strong foundation for sustainable economic growth. In the face of world powers, these balkanized statehoods are vulnerable to international conspiracy of the global big brothers. Africa is at the mercy of the unknown when one looks at our future survival. Our only hope would be in integration (not the late Muammar Gaddafi style where he wanted Africa to become one political entity irrespective of our diversity) but step by step as Museveni has proposed. Museveni says that the foundation for African single state should be built on strong regional political/economic blocks like the East African Community, Ecowas, Sadc and Comesa. I am told that by 1967, the East African Community was the global best practice model of economic integration. The European Union, the best economic/political block of our times, was no match to the formidable East African Community of the late 60s. All of us know what happened when Idi Amin came on the political stage. He squabbled with Tanzania and Kenya and the integration model was disrupted. By mid 1970s, the community had collapsed. With the strong leadership of Yoweri Museveni, Hassan Mwinyi and Mzee Daniel Arap Moi, the community was re-established step by step. We now see a community that has a reasonably working customs union, legislative assembly and East African Court of Justice. A semblance of free...

African ministers and business people joined their American counterparts in Washington, D.C., last week at the U.S.-Africa Business Summit, to discuss greater economic engagement, despite lingering uncertainty over the United States’ position toward global trade. Conversations at the Corporate Council for Africa-hosted event ranged from broad strategy to country-specific investments, with plenty of time for meetings and deal-making. Throughout those talks, a few key issues emerged. First on many attendees’ minds was what the U.S.-Africa relationship will look like under President Donald Trump’s leadership. But robust discussions also emerged around the role of business in pandemic response, how to target and achieve social impact and the need for regional integration and infrastructure improvements. Here’s a look inside several of those conversations, and where they may be headed. The U.S.-Africa relationship U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross addressed the summit, offering reassurances and some specifics about the administration’s view toward existing and future trade pacts with the continent. “We cannot ignore such a large, dynamic and vital part of the world,” he told attendees of the administration’s interest in Africa. The administration would like to see Africa continue to grow and become more self-reliant, he said. “Our trade relationship is vital to the security and stability of both the U.S. and Africa. But our relationship with Africa has to continue its transition from being ‘aid-based’ to ‘trade-based,’” Ross said. The U.S. will honor the African Growth and Opportunity Act, he said, adding that it will hold countries to account for the compliance restrictions....

The Government of the Federal Republic of Germany yesterday committed two grants amounting to € 35 million Euros to the East African Community (EAC). His Excellency, Egon Kochanke, German Ambassador to Tanzania, handed over the commitment note in his meeting yesterday with the EAC Secretary General Liberat Mfumukeko. The financial cooperation grants will be available for the sectors of health and education: Germany will provide 30 million Euros for the procurement of vaccines for children in the EAC against various diseases. The programme will be implemented in collaboration with the GAVI Alliance. This new commitment will bring Germany`s contribution to regional immunisations programmes with the EAC to 90 million Euros since 2012. A further 5 million Euros are foreseen for a new program financing scholarships for post-graduates in the East African Community. The program thus aims at strengthening the younger academic generation in becoming catalysts for further regional integration. H.E. Egon Kochanke pointed out: "The cooperation with the EAC and with the GAVI Alliance on vaccinations are an important pillar in fighting diseases in the region. And our new envisaged scholarship program is another stepping stone towards stronger regional integration in East Africa." Since as early as 1998, Germany's development cooperation, on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), has contributed to the regional integration in East Africa through a variety of programmes and projects. With the new commitments Germany's funding for Technical and Financial Cooperation with the EAC amounts to over 200 million Euros....

Back then did key tourism players approach Trademark East Africa and impressed upon them urgent need to support the tourism private sector across the East African Community for closer integration. EATP since then has come a long way, faced challenges and also triumphed in many instances. The regional members look with pride at the strides made and have confidence in the foundation which has been laid in the East African Community. Since inception in 2012 has EATP managed to facilitate several reforms that have positively impacted East Africa’s tourism industry. The organization has constantly engaged policymakers and championed for the private sector. As a result, they have received recognition from across the globe, with notable examples from UN World Tourism Organization and the World Bank. In the words of a World Bank publication (2016) ‘EATP has shown leadership in attempting to champion and facilitate a collective, coordinated and simultaneous approach to enhancing East Africa’s competitiveness in travel and tourism‘. The organization played a critical role in the pursuance of a Single Destination Brand showcasing East Africa as One in Tourism Expos, zero-cost work permit-enabling free movement of labour, The Single Tourist Visa now in place between Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda, Interstate Pass travel among these three countries for duly registered expatriates, the establishment of a Joint Tourism Marketing Committee and the launch of a Joint Stand/Booth at WTM and ITB Berlin. National tourism private apex bodies were during this period also strengthened and these organizations are now able to lobby...

CTA, in collaboration with various partners, participated in a number of panels at the European Development Days 2017, which took place from the 7th to 8th of June in Brussels (Tour et Taxis). These panels addressed key subjects concerning the future of agriculture: Trade & Investment, Women entrepreneurs and Youth in Agribusiness. Over the space of two days, CTA brought to the forefront of the development community the most pressing issues affecting the agriculture and rural development in Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific. During the first session on Boosting Investment for ACP Inclusive Trade and Development, panellists addressed innovative means to harness investment opportunities to empower the ACP as the world’s next emerging economy. The organisers were the ACP-EU TradeCom II Programme, the ACP-EU TBT Programme and CTA. Bibi Ameenah Firdaus Gurib-Fakim, President of the Republic, Republic of Mauritius, opened the session with a comprehensive overview of the opportunities and challenges faced by the ACP group in the context of trade and development. The European Commission's Roberto Ridolfi, emphasised how the EU can work with the ACP group to enable them to enhance opportunities from trade and sustainable development whilst Pamela Coke-Hamilton from the Caribbeam Export Development Agency was keen to use the example of the Caribbean to emphasise the importance of regional cooperation, intra-ACP collaboration and economic diversification. This was echoed by Masego Marobela, who explored how intra-ACP collaboration has helped to address trade barriers, and called for greater action on this front. She also emphasised the challenges faced...