East African Community Headquarters, Arusha, Tanzania, 2nd June, 2022: The East African Community (EAC) has tabled before the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) the budget estimates for the 2022/2023 Financial Year totaling US$91,579,215. Presenting the speech before the Assembly, the Chairperson of the Council of Ministers and Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary for EAC and Regional Development, Hon. Betty C. Maina, said that the budget estimates for the Financial Year 2022/22023 are being presented at a time when the world’s economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic is under threat from the rising prices of fuel and other commodities, occasioned by the Russian – Ukrainian conflict. “Economic growth in the EAC region averaged 5.9 percent in 2021, compared to an average of 2.3 percent in 2020. The strong regional economic growth in 2021 was largely supported by increased removal of COVID-19 related restrictions, public investments and strong performance in the productive sectors,” said Hon. Maina. The Cabinet Secretary noted that the rising commodity prices, especially fuel and food, are impacting negatively on the welfare of East Africans and the world alike. “Global economic growth is expected to slow down from 6.1 percent in 2021 to 3.6 percent in 2022. Economic growth in the EAC region is projected to decline from an average of 5.9 percent in 2021 to 5.3 percent in 2022 and 5.7 percent in 2023,” she added. The 2022/2023 Budget is themed ‘Accelerating Economic Recovery and Enhancing Productive Sectors for Improved Livelihoods.’ Hon. Maina said that the EAC would focus on...

Summary The bloc’s highest decision-making organ, the Heads of State Summit, will review the protocol at the High-Level Summit Retreat on the Common Market before this year’s summit in April. EAC Secretary-General Dr Peter Mathuki confirmed the plan. Described as one of the most ambitious regional integration agreements globally, the CMP was meant to spur intra-EAC trade but partner states have not enjoyed its full benefits. Other trading bottlenecks include Covid-related measures that saw Uganda, Kenya and Rwanda close their borders at the height of the waves of infections, hampering free movement of goods, workers, services and capital. The East African Community is reviewing the Common Market Protocol to allow a smooth entry of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and spur intra-regional trade, which has stagnated at around 15 percent. The bloc’s highest decision-making organ, the Heads of State Summit, will review the protocol at the High-Level Summit Retreat on the Common Market before this year’s summit in April. EAC Secretary-General Dr Peter Mathuki confirmed the plan. The Common Market was adopted in 2009 and entered into force on July 1, 2010, with the aim of boosting the growth of the EAC through free movement of goods, services, labour and capital. Its introduction five years after the first pillar, the Customs Union (2005), required that it combine the region’s economies, create opportunities for the private sector and increase competitiveness. But, 11 years on, its requirements have been hampered by tariff and non-tariff barriers, red tape and noncompliance by the...

SUMMARY A survey by the Leather Apex Consortium of East Africa (Lacea), which is seeking to establish leather quality infrastructure, finds a sector that is bubbly with optimism and rich material base. A desk study and conversations with industry players and experts across the six EAC members reveals a weak policy environment that discourages investment in value-added products. Leather is one of the most traded agro-driven commodities in the world. At an estimated annual market value of Sh22.8 trillion (USD 200 billion), leather’s revenues are higher than those generated from coffee, tea, rice, rubber, cotton, and sugar combined. Yet East Africa’s share of this pie is a paltry 0.24 percent or Sh54.6 billion (USD 478 million) with its contribution to the East African Community (EAC) Gross Domestic Product a mere 0.28 percent, according to the regional bloc’s Leather Strategy Implementation Roadmap for 2020-2030. This miniscule contribution runs counter to another reality: that East Africa’s leather sector sits on a rich raw material base, playing host to three percent of the world's total bovine herd, five percent of the goats and two percent of the sheep. The strategy, referred to above, identified several obstacles, key of which is the absence of defined production standards. A survey by the Leather Apex Consortium of East Africa (Lacea), which is seeking to establish leather quality infrastructure, finds a sector that is bubbly with optimism and rich material base even as it is held back by low uptake of technology and inadequate supporting policies. A...

The Democratic Republic of Congo will be admitted to the East African community (EAC) come March 29th according to the body foundation Dr Peter Mathuki. This will be a big milestone to Congo as it's a fact they have all along been fighting hard to be admitted as members of the East African community a really big world market.   Here is a link: https://twitter.com/NationBreaking/status/1505817619911294980?s=20&t=-luaM7vqm4OKLP0HFntdWA Currently we have Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda as the main partners in the EAC hence Congo joining will really bring a lot of boost to the market of the community of nations. This is obviously a welcome move and a clear pointer that the EAC community will be moving big strides moving into the future. The move to admit Congo comes after a wide of consultations among the members of EAC in a bid to expand the market and admit it's new neighbours. This only means that the East African community will be seen as a big market to the world obviously due to it's population size as well it's potential to produce a lot of resources as well to the entire world. The only we can wish Congo as a nation is all the best for making such a big milestone. This clearly demonstrates of the need to trade between all this nations. Congratulations to Congo for ceasing hostilities and focusing on the unity of the county and joining the membership of EAC a move supposed to happen on March 29th this year. Read original article

Regional Anti-corruption agencies say corruption continues to derail access to justice and basic services in countries like South Sudan. They primarily blamed bribery within government institutions as the leading impediment to access to basic services. A meeting of anti-graft agencies from Kenya, Burundi, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda noted that corruption and institutional weaknesses allow impunity to reign and undermine the rule of law in the region. A report by The Sentry in 2021 identified Kenya as the leading destination for money laundering from South Sudan. It said corrupt politicians in South Sudan purchased luxury properties in the neighboring country and set up joint business ventures with local partners and used local banks to transfer their money. The gathering by anti-graft agencies held in Nairobi this week underscored the need to deepen the fight to end corruption post the coronavirus pandemic. In June last year, the Kenyan Asset Recovery Agency froze two bank accounts belonging to a senior minister in South Sudan. The accounts contained more than $124,000 and had reportedly made several suspicious transactions and a transfer of half a million US dollars between them. According to the agency, the minister’s accounts had several suspicious transactions, including a transfer of half a million US dollars – prompting the move to freeze them. An Anti-corruption court, however, lifted the freeze order saying the money in question was not proceeds of crime but legitimate remittances from the Minister’s bank accounts in Juba. On Wednesday, Kenya’s Ethics and Anti-Corruption...

Summary There really was never a 100 percent border closure, as the further and unpopular Kagitumba, remained open but for very restricted traffic. Katuna/Gatuna, however, is the big daddy of Rwanda-Uganda border crossings. This time there were extraordinary scenes, as the humble border folk hysterical celebrated as the first passenger buses crossed the border. Many are like faithful polygamists, patriots who love their land with their heads, but whose hearts love the country across where their relatives live, divided from them by colonial borders that the post-independence African rulers inherited and enshrined in stone. This week the Katuna (Rwanda)/Gatuna (Uganda) border opened to passenger traffic after three years following closure in the wake of a big diplomatic fall-out between the two previous bosom allies. It first re-opened at the end of January, but for commercial trucks and Rwandans returning home. There really was never a 100 percent border closure, as the further and unpopular Kagitumba, remained open but for very restricted traffic. Katuna/Gatuna, however, is the big daddy of Rwanda-Uganda border crossings. This time there were extraordinary scenes, as the humble border folk hysterical celebrated as the first passenger buses crossed the border. Many non-border people were surprised and puzzled by the merrymaking. Few people are as intriguing as border folks. Many are like faithful polygamists, patriots who love their land with their heads, but whose hearts love the country across where their relatives live, divided from them by colonial borders that the post-independence African rulers inherited and enshrined in...

The unified digitisation of the East African economy is estimated to generate up to a US$2.6 billion boost in GDP and 4.5 million new jobs Burgeoning tech start-up clusters in Nairobi, Dar es Salaam, Kampala, and Kigali provide inspiration for what the future could hold Data by GSMA reveals that by the end of 2020, 495 million people subscribed to mobile services in Sub-Saharan Africa, representing 46 percent of the region’s population, an increase of almost 20 million on 2019 The rise of digital technologies offers a chance to disrupt East Africa’s economic growth, unlocking new pathways for rapid innovation, job creation, and access to services that would have been unimaginable only a decade ago. The burgeoning tech start-up clusters in Nairobi, Dar es Salaam, Kampala, and Kigali provide inspiration for what the future could hold. By working together and seizing opportunities to ‘leapfrog’ outdated infrastructure, technology, and business models, East African countries stand to position the region as a top digital investment and innovation destination. According to a report by the World Bank, rising mobile phone penetration, improving broadband internet connectivity, and widespread adoption of mobile money across East Africa are changing the way the region communicates, collaborates, and transacts. “This digital evolution has spurred the development of a small, but rapidly growing tech sector, particularly in urban hubs, with innovative entrepreneurs launching new digitally enabled services and creating 21st-century jobs. More significantly, the adoption of digital technology is gradually driving productivity gains in traditional brick and mortar industries,”...

Summary EAC Secretary-General Peter Mathuki said cargo currently accounts for just two percent of global air travel, arguing that air travel is unattainable due to high costs for both passenger and cargo transportation. Regional airlines have been pushing for an open skies policy to allow national airlines to travel to other countries without restrictions, but this has yet to be achieved. The East African Community has called on African leaders to urgently implement the Single African Aviation Market (SAATM) agreement to address the high cost of air travel in the region and boost development. EAC Secretary-General Peter Mathuki said cargo currently accounts for just two percent of global air travel, arguing that air travel is unattainable due to high costs for both passenger and cargo transportation. “These costs can be reduced if we make a political commitment to implement the African Single Market in Aviation (SAATM) Agreement,” Mr Mathuki said during the 7th Africa Infrastructure Development Program (PIDA) Forum last week. Regional airlines have been pushing for an open skies policy to allow national airlines to travel to other countries without restrictions, but this has yet to be achieved. This comes at a time when African nations are shielding their airlines from stiff competition and raising doubts as to whether the dream of an open sky policy can be realized. In 1988, a number of African countries joined forces in the so-called Yamoussoukro Declaration to create open airspace to facilitate movement and boost trade on the continent. In 2000, the...

Complying with the Rules of Origin requirement under a free trade area is perceived as the most restrictive aspect to trading. This was revealed by the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Country Business Index (ACBI) report, which was published on Monday, February 28. “This can be partly explained by the difficulty to conforming to these rules and maybe particularly onerous for informal and especially women,” reads part of the report. The report presented by Stephen Karingi, the Director of the Regional Integration and Trade Division at UNECA, on the sidelines of the eighth session of Africa Regional Forum on Sustainable Development, surveyed businesses in  Angola, Cote d'Ivoire, Gabon, Kenya, Namibia, Nigeria and South Africa. Rules of origin are the criteria needed to determine the national source of a product, and are important because duties and restrictions most often depend upon the source of imports. We need more business friendly rules of origin John Bosco Kalisa, CEO of the East African Business Council (EABC), who attended the Webinar on Primer for the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Country Business Index Report organized by the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) told The New Times that the rules of origin are “very complex and unfriendly” and it is difficult to enable SMEs comply with them. He added: “Therefore, we are advocating for a quick review of current rules of origin to take into consideration the needs of SMEs and informal cross border businesses. “We need more business-friendly rules of origin that are simple, flexible, transparent...

Summary The stakeholders urged health officials across East Africa states to allow fully vaccinated drivers to only present 14 days negative PCR tests when crossing borders. The Federation of East African Freight Forwarders Associations (EAFFA) president Fred Seka had earlier asked EAC partner states to slacken Covid-9 protocols to ease congestion at border points. The positivity rate in Kenya according to official data was at 0.1 percent from a sample size of 3,956 last week. Logistics players in East Africa want governments to ease Covid test protocols in the wake of a decline in positivity rate and vaccination rollout across the region. The stakeholders urged health officials across East Africa states to allow fully vaccinated drivers to only present 14 days negative PCR tests when crossing borders as a means of reducing Non-Tariff Barriers (NTBs). “Many countries in the world have adopted this system and we view it as the best way forward under the prevailing circumstances. We should allow drivers tested within 14 days to cross the borders to reduce congestion,” said the Kenya Transporters Association (KTA) chairman Newton Wang’oo. The transporters’ association with more than 5,000 members in a statement addressed to Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi and South Sudan authorities said Covid-19 protocols ought to be eased to boost cross-border trade. The Federation of East African Freight Forwarders Associations (EAFFA) president Fred Seka had earlier asked EAC partner states to slacken Covid-9 protocols to ease congestion at border points. “We need to urgently revise the Covid-19 protocols,...