The Covid-19 pandemic is literally changing the way we live.. Several countries have imposed stringent lockdown measures a way of combating the dreaded disease. The Stay at Home restrictions have resulted into a slowdown of the social and economic life, with most activities coming to a near standstill and haunting images of empty streets from Lagos to Kampala, to Cape Town to Addis Ababa becoming part of the ‘new normal’. Unlike other global crises, such as the 2008 financial crisis, or the 2014 commodities crisis, which put stress on capital markets and the macro and formal economies, the Covid-19 pandemic has impacted both formal and informal economies. The lockdowns and curfews have had a disproportionate impact on the most vulnerable people of our societies; particularly women and the urban poor, who are mostly engaged in informal activities with a daily income, and do not have the luxury of working from home. Majority of the daily income earners, as well as micro and small entrepreneurs, will not be able to meet their loan obligations because their sources of income have literally dried up. Also, the collection of microfinance loans, which usually happens on a cash basis during weekly group meetings, has come to a halt as authorities have put in place strong social distancing guidelines. Most of these people have not only lost their livelihoods, in this Covid-19 lockdown, but have also lost the capital that they had for their informal activities. Such capital normally ranges from between $30 and $100....

The increasing calls for more economic protectionism spell disaster for Africa – and the UK must use its new freedom to rebut them Covid-19 has now spread to all corners of Africa and, as the rate of infections increase, the continent's economies are coming to a crashing halt, risking the reversal of two decades of economic progress. Trade has been the heartbeat of Africa's economic success, with the UK alone importing £12.7bn in goods and services from Africa in 2016, much of which from the agriculture sector. But this vital economic activity, and the millions of livelihoods it sustains, is under threat. Trade volumes in the East African Community are down by up to 25pc since the beginning of 2020, with even worse damage in the informal sector. There are warnings of a food security disaster on the continent. The threat is not only from Covid-19 itself. As Dr Dirk Willem te Velde, of the Overseas Development Institute, explains: "Some in the UK – and other large economies around the world – are arguing for autarky or increasingly protectionist policies that would wreak havoc on trade with Africa, often disguised as well-meaning social and environmental objectives, or attempts to protect domestic businesses and jobs. These protectionist voices must be resisted." Policymakers must understand the full consequences if stringent new production standards are imposed on imports, as some in the UK are calling for. Proxy export embargo Exports from much of Africa would be effectively locked out from the UK and...

Protectionism is seemingly on the rise and this, combined with the already devastating economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, may have serious repercussions for African trade. CNBC Africa spoke with Frank Matsaert, CEO of Trade Mark East Africa on how to keep trade between Africa and the rest of the world flowing. Source: CNBC Africa

COVID-19 has now spread to all corners of Africa and, as the rate of infections increase, the continent’s economies are coming to a crashing halt, risking the reversal of two decades of economic progress. Trade has been the heartbeat of Africa’s economic success, with the UK alone importing £12.7bn in goods and services from Africa in 2016, much of which from the agriculture sector. But this vital economic activity, and the millions of livelihoods it sustains, is under threat. Trade volumes in the East African Community are down by up to 25% since the beginning of 2020, with even worse damage in the informal sector. There are warnings of a food security disaster on the continent. The threat is not only from COVID-19 itself. As the Overseas Development Institute’s Dirk Willem te Velde explains: “Some in the UK – and other large economies around the world – are arguing for autarky or increasingly protectionist policies that would wreak havoc on trade with Africa, often disguised as well-meaning social and environmental objectives, or attempts to protect domestic businesses and jobs. These protectionist voices must be resisted.” Policy makers must understand the full consequences if stringent new production standards are imposed on imports, as some in the UK are calling for. Exports from much of Africa would be effectively locked-out from the UK and their other major markets around the world, leading to countless jobs being lost on the Continent where unemployment rates are already as high as 70%. At the same...

Trade in the East African community has been greatly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic with exports in the region declining by more than 60 per cent in the past two months according to the East Africa Business Council. Join this CNBC Africa panel of stakeholders and experts for more on this Source: CNBC Africa

The call is from Erastus Mwencha, the former Secretary-General of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) and Tony Pengelly, the Director of the Secretariat for the UK All-Party Parliamentary Group for Trade Out of Poverty. Writing in The Daily Telegraph newspaper this week, they said: “Trade has been the heartbeat of Africa’s success, with the UK alone importing £12.7 billion in goods and services from Africa in 2016, much of which from the agriculture sector. “But this vital economic activity, and the millions of livelihoods it sustains, is under threat. “We must act now to keep trade with Africa flowing.” The writers noted that trade in the Eastern African Community had fallen by 25 per cent since the beginning of this year and warned of the danger of protectionist policies that were being advocated in the UK. “Policymakers must understand the full consequences if stringent new production standards are imposed on imports, as some in the UK are calling for. “Exports from much of Africa would be effectively locked out from the UK and their other major markets around the world, leading to countless jobs being lost on the continent, where unemployment rates are already as high as 70 per cent. “At the same time, British consumers would be denied goods such as Kenyan tea and green beans, or Ghanaian cocoa and fruit. “There are no winners in this situation,” write Mr Mwencha, who is also a former Deputy Chairman of the African Union Commission, and Mr...

The UK government has been urged to keep trade with Africa flowing in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic that experts say is threatening to destroy 20 years of economic progress on the continent. The call comes from Erastus Mwencha, the former Secretary-General of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) and Tony Pengelly, the Director of the Secretariat for the UK All-Party Parliamentary Group for Trade Out of Poverty. Writing in The Daily Telegraph newspaper this week, they said: “Trade has been the heartbeat of Africa’s success, with the UK alone importing £12.7 billion in goods and services from Africa in 2016, much of which from the agriculture sector. “But this vital economic activity, and the millions of livelihoods it sustains, is under threat. “We must act now to keep trade with Africa flowing.” The writers noted that trade in the Eastern African Community had fallen by 25 per cent since the beginning of this year and warned of the danger of protectionist policies that were being advocated in the UK. “Policymakers must understand the full consequences if stringent new production standards are imposed on imports, as some in the UK are calling for. “Exports from much of Africa would be effectively locked out from the UK and their other major markets around the world, leading to countless jobs being lost on the continent, where unemployment rates are already as high as 70 per cent. “At the same time, British consumers would be denied goods such as...

COVID-19 | TRADE Uganda enjoyed a booming cross-border informal trade, 80% of which was being done by women as their sole source of income. However, the inevitable closure of borders because of the dangerous COVID-19 is threatening to drive the women out of business, writes Faridah Kulabako Over the past decade, increasing the participation of women in cross-border trade has been a key focus area for stakeholders in trade, including the Government, through the ministries of trade and the East African Community affairs and development partners, including TradeMark Africa (TMA), USAID and the Eastern African Sub Regional Support Initiative for the Advancement of Women. Policies have been instituted to increase the participation of informal cross-border women traders to boost their incomes, improve living standards, and contribute to the country’s overall economic development. Data from the Bank of Uganda (BOU) indicates that informal cross-border exports fetched the country a total of $595m (about sh2.8 trillion) in the 2017/18 financial year. The Democratic Republic of Congo was Uganda’s leading export destination, accounting for $291m (sh1.3 trillion). It was followed by Kenya with $149m (sh691b) worth of exports, Rwanda, and South Sudan at $54m (sh250b) each, then Tanzania at $45m. The main export items were agricultural produce, mainly beans, maize, sugar, bananas, and fish. Trade was generally booming, then the COVID-19 reached the region, necessitating the closure of borders and paralysing movement. According to the Elegu Women Traders chairperson, Margaret Auma, her group members are now stuck with merchandise – cereals, grains, and...

Companies in the region are pushing for tax waivers on medical devices and food to cushion businesses as countries face an upsurge in Coronavirus cases. The East African Business Council (EABC), a regional lobby for business and the private sector, said in a statement said that EAC member states should waive Customs duties and value added tax for medical devices and protective equipment from the region and other highly demanded goods in battling Covid-19. The statement, issued at the end of the 76th Board Meeting of the EABC, said all six members of the EAC—Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and South Sudan —have been affected by the viral disease. Private sector organisations from Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and South Sudan also called for a common approach to businesses to safeguard the region’s jobs and exports. EABC chief executive Peter Mathuki said: “Given the intrinsic nature and level of integration of the EAC, the impact of Covid-19 poses high risks at the regional level regarding the recovery of tourism, SMEs, and manufacturing business sectors hence there is an urgent need for a common approach on the preparedness, response measures and recovery strategy for the EAC region.” “A common approach will safeguard current and future jobs, exports, businesses and offer quick economic recovery for the EAC bloc,” he added. The statement further says that EAC should ensure food security and supply of raw materials, enhance the supply of agricultural input and extension services to farmers, and promote agro-processing and urban farming....

Legal Practitioner and Senior Partner at AB& David Africa, David Fosu-Dorte has called on African governments to domesticate purchases and procurement processes to boost Intra-African trade strategizes and minimize the negative economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. “We could see Africa and some countries in Africa becoming an alternative base of supply chain of some items. We may have to as African countries coordinate our response to COVID in such a way that COVID becomes an impetus for increasing intra African trade rather than decreasing it,” he said. Speaking on the Eye on Port Panel discussion on how national and international Trade and regional Protocols have been frustrated by the COVID-19, the lawyer, said the global consequences of COVID-19 should teach African nations a lesson to boost intra-African trade because the reliance on the West and Far East has obviously proven not to be the best sustainable option. AfCFTA Implementation He also indicated that the COVID-19 has significantly impacted the establishment of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement in various ways, including uncertainty surrounding the level of commitment of governments, and the closure of borders indicating a substantial reduction of intra-African trade volumes since the pandemic. “Businesses on the continent are having stresses so you don’t expect them to ramp up production especially at a point they can’t export. So in the absence of open borders, in the absence of free movement, definitely, all these are going to affect the ability to produce and even when the restrictions are lifted...