Intra-regional trade within the East African Community (EAC) bloc rose by 10.3 per cent last year, courtesy of harmonisation of cross-border rules and procedures. "Reforms taken under the Customs Union has also boosted intra-regional trade," Mr Christophe Bazivamo, EAC deputy secretary general responsible for productive and social sectors, said in Arusha yesterday. He said intra-EAC trade catapulted to $3.2 billion last year from $2.7 billion in 2016 and $2.9 billion in 2017. Mr Bazivamo disclosed this here at the just concluded second meeting of the EAC Development Partners' Group (DPG). The meeting held at the EAC headquarters deliberated on key aspects of the economic integration and infrastructure development. Officials at the EAC secretariat officials say there was "no one rule or procedure" introduced but insisted generally most of the trade procedures within the region have been simplified. They cite the operationalisation of the EAC Single Customs Territory (SCT), the Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) and One Stop Border Post (OSBP) and their respective rules and regulations as having a multiplier effect on the ease of doing business in the region. Also Read Tanzania Government rules out intervention as food prices soar Tanzania Government scraps 36 water authorities over cost Huawei's latest technology to bring high-speed internet in Tanzania Alongside with these is enhanced customs operations inter-connectivity in the region which has seen the introduction of Electronic Cargo Tracking System to monitor the movement of traded goods across the region. Mr Bazivamo told representatives of development partners that despite a host of...

$3tn GDP growth opportunity if the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is fully implemented Biggest potential economic gain and business opportunities will be from from growth in trade between African nations Countries with open economies and significant cross-border trade set to benefit most quickly South Africa, Ghana, Côte d'Ivoire, Kenya and Morocco will grow most from AfCFTA Conflicts with older regional free trade agreements a major hurdle Manufacturing among sectors with biggest growth opportunities Success dependent on African countries putting rules, regulations and mechanisms in place around Rules of Origin, digital payments and the elimination of non-tariff barriers. New research from global law firm Baker McKenzie and Oxford Economics – AfCFTA's US$ 3 trillion Opportunity: Weighing Existing Barriers against Potential Economic Gains - shows that if fully implemented, the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) will unlock significant but uneven growth opportunities on the continent. The African Union is putting the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) into operation. It will be the world's largest free trade area by number of countries and is so far in force across 27 countries. Open economy key to success Some countries are currently better placed than others to reap the rewards of intraregional trade and numerous obstacles mean that the tangible benefits of the agreement will likely only be realized from 2030. The report finds countries with good existing trade integration with their neighbours and which have open economies are most likley to benefit economically from lower trade tariffs. For example, South...

“The longer we take, the longer it will take us time to develop, we will have nobody else to blame instead let’s point fingers at ourselves. If we will not involve women let us stop pointing fingers at any other person because we have our means and ways of how to liberate ourselves so the time for blame game is over, it’s us on stage to make decisions to include more women in decision making,” she said. She made the remarks during the EAC Arts and Culture Festival themed around culture diversity, as a key driver to regions integration economic growth and promotion of tourism which attracted high profile government officials from Rwanda, Uganda, Kenya, Burundi and the host Tanzania. According to her, when you look at the unifications of German and Italy which took four years to come into force, they also had some other interest to protect their countries but, instead they looked at the bigger picture and right now they are ruling the world…… “So can we move now, can we forget about other small differences and concentrate on the bigger interest of the children and future greater grandchildren.” She further stressed that it is a deliberate means and efforts for the East Africa countries to bring women on board to walk side by side with men, the process will be much easier when women are involved. Especially that women were peace makers, women never start wars but it is their counterparts who starts wars and women...

Vera Songwe, the Executive Secretary of the UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), on Tuesday last week opened the 23rd meeting of the intergovernmental committee of senior officials and experts from 14 eastern African countries in Asmara, Eritrea insisting on the importance of increasing regional trade and implementing the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA). Leveraging new opportunities for regional integration was the theme of the ECA annual meeting. In the eastern trading Africa bloc, she said, the implementation of the continental free trade agreement could result in $1.8 billion welfare gains and creation of 2 million new jobs. The New Times’ James Karuhanga caught up with Songwe to talk about, among others, why the historic agreement is not just another trade agreement, what the meeting’s host country – which was hosting the meeting for the very first time – has to offer, and the importance of the continent’s aspirations for peace and harmony. Excerpts: In the discussions on leveraging new opportunities for regional integration in eastern Africa, the AfCFTA keeps coming up again and you particularly emphasised that this is not just another trade agreement. Why? Like I said, this is not just another agreement because it actually is, if it is taken right, a stepping stone for huge investment compact for the continent. The Continental Free Trade Area Agreement is, on paper, a policy statement but I think when you translate that policy statement into actuality, it means that we need to create industries, develop infrastructure, build roads, make our airlines...

President Paul Kagame told lawyers from member countries of the East African Community that they should continue to have an active role in realising the integration agenda for the region. The members of the East Africa Law Society are meeting in Kigali for the annual conference and General Assembly. Kagame, who is also the Chairperson of the EAC, said the bloc is the institutional embodiment of the region’s political will to integrate economies and cooperate closely. Among the achievements the regional body has made, he mentioned the Customs Union, the Common Market and the ability of citizens to travel freely. “Every aspect of the integration agenda is ultimately expressed as law. Without relevant legal frameworks, noble ideals can never be turned into reality,” he noted. “Of course, those agreements do not guarantee implementation. But they are a first and essential step. It is therefore highly significant that the East Africa Law Society is not only the largest professional association in East Africa, but one of the most vibrant,” he added. The Head of State applauded the East Africa Law Society’s commitment to the regional integration agenda over the past 24 years. “There have been difficult moments, but you have held together strongly. And there will certainly be more challenges on the road ahead. We are counting on you to continue in the same spirit,” he said. The East Africa Law Society comprises 19,000 members whose voices the President indicated were needed to drive the integration agenda, highlighting that the survival...

President Yoweri Museveni has urged African countries to promote trade as one of the strategies that will ensure the survival of the continent and the prosperity of the people. “Today, Africans must know that trade is a matter of survival. If you don’t trade, you will collapse because prosperity comes from trade,” he said. The President was opening the Uganda-Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) joint Business Forum at Munyonyo that is running under the theme ‘Promoting Bilateral Trade for Mutual Peace and Prosperity’. The one-day conference was attended by business delegations from  Uganda and neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) as well as the line Ministers from the 2 countries. It is taking place as DRC President  Felix Tshisekedi starts a two day state visit to Uganda. The Governor of Beni in the DRC, Nyonyi Bwanakawa and that of Ituri also in the DRC, Jean Bamanisa Saidi, among others, were also present at the business forum. President Museveni, who warmly welcomed the DRC delegation to Uganda informing them that we are one people divided by the colonial boundaries, said trade in the region started  very many years ago. “Congo and East Africa have been trading since time immemorial,” he observed. The President cited products that were being traded from the Indian Ocean coast such as textiles, glass, beads and guns in exchange with the interior areas that included such products like copper, ivory, iron and cows. Museveni asserted that by facilitating trade, a number of challenges are resolved including job creation,...

Amr Kamel, the executive Vice President in charge of Business Development and Corporate Banking at the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), has said they are ready to work with African banks and bankers and to ensure that the banks are well-equipped to deal with the risks in financing trade under a difficult politico-economic environment and changing trade counter-parties. Kamel was speaking at the Afreximbank Trade Finance Seminar and Workshop which was attended by more than 200 participants, including senior executives from African banks, financial institutions, regulatory institutions. It was organised by Afreximbank in collaboration with the South African province of Kwazulu-Natal. The training had been structured to ensure that participants acquired the capacity to structure bankable trade finance deals of varying levels of complexity, he stated. “As Banks, we all play a critical role in promoting trade,” said Mr. Kamel. He said that 2019 would go down as a watershed in Africa’s history, being the year when the continent came together to affirm its commitment to addressing its economic and social problems through the launch of the operational phase of the African Free Trade Continental Agreement (AfCFTA). “This should provide traders across Africa with preferential trading arrangements to enable them to enhance the level of intra-African trade and enhance economic growth for our countries,” he said. Also speaking, Sihle Zikalala, Premier of KwaZulu-Natal Province, said that the province aimed to position itself as the gateway to South Africa and the entire Southern African region. It aspired to act increasingly as a...

COMESA and Trade Mark East Africa (TMA) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to promote trade in the region by removing obstacles that impede the smooth flow or trade among the Member States in the region. Working closely with international and regional organizations, such as Trade Mark East Africa, national institutions, the private sector and civil society organizations, this will enable promote trade by unlocking the economic potential of the COMESA region through increased physical access to markets, enhanced trade environment and improved business competitiveness. The MoU marks an important milestone in providing a framework of cooperation and partnership between the two organizations in areas of common interest. These include market access, development or border post infrastructure, improvement of trade environment through trade facilitation and inclusion of the private sector as key players in economic development. The pact was signed by the Trade Mark East Africa Executive Director Frank Matsaert and COMESA Secretary General Chileshe Mpundu Kapwepwe at the COMESA Secretariat. "We are getting into this partnership to ensure that through policy formulation, creation of trade facilitation tool which are automated as well as standards and non-tariff barrier (NTB) removal so that business people, whether SMEs or large enterprises get the benefits," Mr. Matsaert stated. Secretary General indicated that jointly, COMESA and TMA will implement trade facilitation initiatives in the region through application or respective regional and international instruments. In particular, support will be provided to Member States to implement the World Trade Organization Trade Facilitation Agreement. The partnership between the two...

The World Customs Organization of East and Southern Africa on Wednesday dispelled fears that the coming into effect of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement was likely to affect revenue collection among countries in the African region. Larry Liza, director of the customs organization in charge of building capacity said countries will need to put in place implementation measures and legal frameworks aimed at protecting revenue collection. He said there was need for countries to look at a broader picture on what benefits were expected to be accrued from the agreement. "The market may seem to affect revenue collection, but the agreement is expected to be more beneficial to society through increased trade facilitation and business opportunities," he is quoted as saying by the state-run news agency, the Zambian News and Information Service (ZANIS). According to him there was no need for stakeholders to be agitated with the impending implementation of the agreement, adding that it will allow the business community to have access to foreign markets. Source: Xinhau

With the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) set to officially start operating from July next year, there is need for concerted efforts to enlarge the group of State parties under the agreement in excess of the current 28 countries that have so far deposited instruments of ratification. Enlarging the group will see the continent creating a much bigger market that will ensure intra-African trade delivers, in particular by contributing to the continent's industrialisation and structural transformation processes thereby creating more job opportunities and reducing poverty along the way. This was said Tuesday by Stephen Karingi, Director of the ECA's Regional Integration and Trade Division, at the ongoing 23rd Meeting of the Intergovernmental Committee of Senior Officials and Experts (ICSOE) for Eastern Africa in Asmara, Eritrea. "To operationalize the AfCFTA, we need to finalize the remaining critical components like goods schedules and rules of origin. We also need to enlarge the group of State parties and to create institutions, establish operative mechanisms, and introduce obligations into law and regulation to effectively implement the AfCFTA," said Mr. Karingi. He said Africa also needs to take complementary measures to maximize benefits, in particular following AfCFTA national strategies; conclude Phase II negotiations, especially competition policy, intellectual property rights, and investment, and use the AfCFTA as a vehicle for achieving the African single market. Mr. Karingi said following the implementation of the AfCFTA, based on the sole reduction of tariffs on goods, Africa's GDP would increase under all scenarios. In preparation for July 2020,...