The Private Sector Foundation of Uganda (PSFU) and the East Africa Business Council (EABC) have urged Heads of States for the East Africa Community (EAC) to resolve the current political tensions between them that are limiting trade and movement of goods and people among the states. The EABC executive director, Stuart Mwesigwa said while the EAC is one of Africa’s fastest-growing regional blocs that has made great progress in regional trade integration and promotion, the current political tensions between some countries is harming the private sector who can no longer trade and move freely around the community which was the main objective for the formation of the bloc “There have been milestones like the establishment of the single customs territory and one stop border posts (OSBP) which should have eased movement of persons and goods as well as trade facilitation. However, there are still major challenges like Non-Tariff Barriers, protectionist tendencies by nations, delays in harmonization and domestication of EAC agreed decisions and directives,” he said The ED PSFU Gideon Badagawa said tissues like closure of the border by Rwanda, persistent internal conflicts in Burundi and Congo, the Ebola scare in Congo, refusal of Ugandan goods over standards in Kenya and Tanzania among other issues are undermining the possible great achievement of the EAC bloc “The EAC should be people centered, it should be private sector-led. For us we do not care about the politics, what we care about is having a market for our goods and services. We hope...

The AfCFTA Forum in Tanzania raised awareness about AfCFTA implementation, and demonstrated the value of doing so. Organised by the UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) and Trademark East Africa (TMA), the Tanzanian edition of the AfCFTA forum was held in Dar es Salaam on Tuesday 22 Oct 2019 and was attended by policymakers, private sector and the civil society representatives. John Ulanga, CEO of Trademark East Africa (TMA) in Tanzania,  emphasised the importance of that forum, underscoring the role of development partners like TMA and ECA in raising visibility and understanding of the AfCFTA. Andrew Mold, Acting Director of ECA in Eastern Africa, made a presentation highlighting the potential benefits of AfCFTA.  “The implementation of the AfCFTA could result in welfare gains amounting to USD 1.8 billion for Eastern Africa and creating 2 million new jobs”, said Mold. Participants at the meeting affirmed that increased awareness of AfCFTA in the country is very essential. They also noted that harmonising standards across the region would tackle the issues associated with non-tariff barriers, and this translates as more – and more fruitful – trade within and between East African countries. Infrastructure will also prove instrumental in reducing the cost of doing business in Tanzania, and therefore holds another key for unlocking the full potential of AfCFTA. Meanwhile, the role of informal trade was emphasised, with it emerging that participants were keen to understand how the AfCFTA could move people into formal work. This Forum held in Dar Es Salaam is one in a...

  Source: Soft Power

The East African Community (EAC) is not ready for the fourth industrial revolution even as the wave sweeps across the world. This is according to experts who spoke at an industrial conference at the EAC Secretariat in Arusha this week organised by the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (Unido) and German Society for International Cooperation. The Global Manufacturing Industrial Summit (GMIS) roadshow sought to explore the implications of the revolution for the region’s manufacturing, industrialisation and investment prospects. For us to achieve inclusive and sustainable industrialisation, we need to invest in advanced disruptive technologies like 3-D printing, Internet of Things, advanced robotics and drones, which will make manufacturing smarter, efficient and greener,” said Stephen Kargbo, Unido Representative in Tanzania, Mauritius and EAC Secretariat. He added that the advancement of these manufacturing technologies will also help improve acquisition of agro-industries, water and sanitation quality for the rapidly developing towns and cities. Most of these industrialised countries account for over 90 per cent of digital production technologies, have invested hugely in research and development campaigns and we have to move in that direction,” added Kargbo, who said there is also need for solid industrial policy. EAC first came up with an industrialisation policy for 2012-2015 but it failed to be implemented and was revised to 2021-2032. The contribution of manufacturing to the gross domestic product in East Africa is estimated at 8.9 per cent, which is considerably below the average target of about 25 per cent that all the five partner states...

The meeting is held during the “Africa Industrialization Week”, organized by the African Union from the 18th to the 22nd November 2019, according to the press statement from AFZO. The attendees include over 220 delegates representing 43 countries attended this important event, including 60 African economic zones, 30 experts, as well as several representatives of governmental authorities, international institutions and public and private organizations. Several international speakers representing international and financial institutions such as UNCTAD, UNIDO, UNECA, AfDB etc. shared during this event their expertise on effective means for economic zones development in Africa. the statement noted that various topics related to challenges and trends of African economic zones were addressed including strategic directions and effective governance model, contribution of economic zones for FDI growth and job creation, importance of logistics competitiveness within economic zones, skills development and training. The opening ceremony of the Africa Free Zones Organization’ 4th Annual Meeting was cochaired by M. Albert Muchanga the Commissioner for Trade and Industry of the African Union Commission (AUC), Ms Dagmawit Moges the Minister of Transport of Ethiopia, M Mehdi Tazi Riffi the President of the Africa Free Zones Organization. Serving the development of Economic Zones in Africa AFZO was founded back in 2015 by Tanger Med along with other African economic zones. Africa Free Zones Organization brings together the leading African economic zones and institutions in charge of the development, management and promotion of economic zones in our continent. The Africa Free Zones Organization aims to ensure: – Representation...

The umbrella organization of the private sector of the East African Community (EAC) on Tuesday called for the elimination of non-tariff barriers within the economic bloc in order to boost intra-regional trade. Nicholas Nesbitt, chairman of East African Business Council (EABC) told journalists in Nairobi that the six-member trading bloc has achieved many milestones to facilitate trade. "There are still several challenges to be addressed, including reduction of non-tariff barriers, protectionist tendencies by nations that are hindering the expansion of intra-EAC trade," Nesbitt said. The EABC said that it is committed to advocacy that is aimed at making east Africa a leading trade and investment destination within Africa. "As the voice of the private sector in East Africa, we are committed to driving the integration process through high-level public-private dialogue engagement and platforms," he added. Nesbitt added that cross-border trade could be further enhanced by lowering of the cost of air travel among the member states. Source: Xinhau

The East Africa Business Council Is Now Calling On The East African Heads Of States And Their Governments, To Oversee A Harmonized Business Tariff In Order To Ease Businesses Transactions Among The Member States. Speaking To The Press Earlier Today While Briefing On The Upcoming Business Summit That Will Be Held In Arusha Tanzania On 30TH November Of This Year, KEPSA Chairman Nicholas Nesbitt Says That The Significant Growth Of Trade In East Africa Can Be Attributed To Removal Of Trade Barriers In The Region. He Also Said That Not All Member States Seem To Agree With The Common Tariff But They Are Hopeful They Will Consider The Request. Source: KTN News

East Africa’s private sector players are concerned by the slow pace of resolving a common external tariff (CET) regime which is expected to usher in a free trade zone. A free trade zone will increase intra East African Community (EAC) trade, as there will be no duty on goods and services imposed amongst them. The regime will also agree on a common CET, where imports from countries outside the bloc will be subjected to the same tariff across partner states. Though Nicholas Nesbitt, the chair of East African Business Council, did not directly refer to the frustrations, it is an inference taken out of his statement when he said the issue was creating a “dilemma.” Council agenda Nesbitt said finalising the review on CET was part of an item on the council’s agenda, to be presented to the EAC council of ministers for delivery of quick wins for the region. “There are ongoing discussions whether to adopt a three-band or four-band structure with the highest rate of 35 per cent CET. The challenge is if you are a manufacturing country, you will want a high CET while trading countries will want a low CET to import finished goods for your citizens. Therein, lies the dilemma,” said Nesbitt. The implementation of CET is behind schedule, as it was to take effect on July 1, this year. The bloc’s member states had agreed there be a CET of zero per cent on raw materials and capital goods, 10 per cent on intermediate...

Intra-African trade will increase by 52.3 per cent under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), according to the African Trade Report 2018. The report, released by a pan African financial institution, Areximbank, the value and volumes of traded goods and services are also expected to more than double within the first decade of implementation, it has been revealed. Trade experts say this will happen if the implementation “is accompanied by robust trade facilitation measures”. According to the report, removal of all tariffs will lead to welfare gains of $3.58 billion. The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is anticipated to increase by 0.65 per cent, volume of exports grows by 2.94 per cent and imports increase by 3.13 per cent. However, removal of all tariffs and all non-tariff barriers (NTBs) will lead to a welfare gain of $17.95 billion, 3.15 per cent growth in GDP, 5.2 per cent growth in exports and 6.59 per cent growth in imports.

The African Development Bank (AfDB) has signed an unfunded $250-million (Shs920bn) Risk Participation Agreement (RPA) facility with ABSA – a pan-Africa financial institution with a solid presence in 12 African countries. The 3-year RPA facility was signed November 12, on the sidelines of the Africa Investment Form through its trade finance operations. Under this 3-year RPA facility, the Bank and ABSA will share default risk on a portfolio of eligible trade transactions originated by African Issuing Banks (IBs) and confirmed by ABSA. Leveraging the Bank’s AAA rating, ABSA will underwrite trade transactions issued by African issuing banks across key sectors like agriculture, energy, and light-manufacturing with a special focus on Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SME’s)  in fragile and low-income African countries. The Bank’s commitment under the RPA is to assume up to 50% (and 75% in special cases) of every underlying transaction issued by the IBs, while ABSA will confirm such a transaction and bear not less than 50% of its underlying risk. Working with strategic partners like ABSA, the Bank’s  trade finance operations aim to facilitate inter and intra Africa trade by reducing the trade financing gap on the continent. Since 2013, the Bank’s RPA program has supported over 16 issuing banks with about US$650 million  limits in Southern Africa alone, with special focus on SMEs and local corporates in manufacturing, agribusiness, import/export and energy sectors. In the same period, the program supported over $4billion in trade volumes across Africa, with $938 million of that being intra-Africa trade....