Lomé, 17th September 2021: Today, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat and TradeMark Africa (TMA), aimed at promoting cooperation and collaboration between the two organisations in their common goal of supporting trade in Africa. The MoU was signed in Lomé, Togo, by His Excellency Wamkele Mene, Secretary-General of the AfCFTA, and Frank Matsaert, Chief Executive Officer at TMA. The AfCFTA and TMA are united in their shared goal of increasing prosperity in Africa through the liberalisation of trade on the continent. This MoU represents the next logical step for the two organisations as they work to increase the ease and standards of trade across Africa; support engagement with the continent’s private sector on trade and economic development issues; digitisation of key trade processes at a national level, followed by linking these at a regional level and policies to promote the use of e-commerce across the continent; and develop regional value chains and investment while developing Africa’s cross-border trade with a particular focus on women traders, youth and MSMEs. The Agreement will also allow the two organisations to share costs and support each other in logistical challenges as they seek to implement programmes to develop trade across Africa. His Excellency Wamkele Mene, Secretary-General of the AfCFTA, said: “The MoU will further allow the AfCFTA Secretariat working with partners including TMA to facilitate State Parties to carry out the necessary reforms needed to fully implement the AfCFTA, unlocking the continent’s trade potential...

In Summary Burundi ratified the AfCFTA on June 17, while Tanzania endorsed on September 9. Other EAC Partner States that have ratified the agreement are Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda. East African Community Secretary General Peter Mathuki has hailed Burundi and Tanzania for ratifying the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement (AfCFTA). Burundi ratified the AfCFTA on June 17,  while Tanzania endorsed on September 9. So far, 42 countries have ratified the AfCFTA that seeks to boost intra-African trade. Mathuki said that the AfCFTA would allow East Africans to access a large continental market and increase EAC’s exports to African countries outside the bloc. “It will also improve movement of people across Africa, advance trade and development aspirations and ultimately put the region in a better position to trade more with the rest of the world,” said Mathuki. He further disclosed that the EAC had initiated a number of steps towards the implementation of the AfCFTA Agreement, adding that the ratification by Burundi and Tanzania would expedite the implementation of the agreement. Other EAC Partner States that have ratified the agreement are Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda. South Sudan has signed the AfCFTA but is yet to ratify it. Mathuki said that the bloc had almost finalised the submission of its tariff offers, which conform to the agreed modalities in addition to the schedules of liberalization of trade in services. “We have also prepared a draft strategy for the implementation of the Agreement, which takes into account the need for capacity building....

The African Development Bank (AfDB) has earmarked $50 million for women business projects in the eastern Africa region. This was revealed this week by the regional director of the continental bank during his visit to the East African Community (EAC) and affiliated bodies in Arusha. Cheptoo Kipronoh who heads AfDB operations in Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea and Seychelles said this was part of a wider support to the region. “Some $50 million have been earmarked to support women in business,” he said during his visit to the East African Business Council (EABC) head offices. The apex body of private sector associations based here has a full desk coordinating women-in-business programmes within the region. Mr Kipronoh added that the continental bank had also granted $900 000 to the EAC secretariat for the fight against Covid-19 epidemic. The Abidjan-based AfDB is the main financier of a host of infrastructure development projects in the EAC bloc. Within Tanzania, these include the 110-kilometre Arusha-Namanga road (which extends to Athi River in Kenya), 41km Arusha By-Pass and 14km Arusha Tengeru road. Plans are afoot for the proposed 110km Arusha-Holili highway which would be widened to a four lane road to serve the increasing traffic. Kipronoh commended Tanzania for ratifying the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement and the EAC Protocol on Sanitary and Phytosanitary measures. “These shall boost intra-African trade, food safety and agribusiness in the EAC bloc,” he said. He further elaborated that AfCFTA’s 1.2-billion market offers a pathway...

Summary A study by Forbes further indicates that 96 percent of women have primary or shared responsibility for their families’ financial decisions. In Kenya, women make about 52 percent of the country’s population and about 30 percent of registered businesses are women-owned but their financial inclusion remains slim. Closing the gender inequality gap remains an economic challenge and necessity across the world. A lot of effort is being put into the gender agenda by governments, private sector and other institutions to narrow this disparity. In Africa, women are applying themselves in every field to financially support their families and communities. Research has shown that one in four women is starting or managing a business, making Africa the continent with the highest percentage of women entrepreneurs in the world. A study by Forbes further indicates that 96 percent of women have primary or shared responsibility for their families’ financial decisions, and 70-80 percent of all consumer purchases are driven by women, through buying power and influence. Even more importantly, women own and lead roughly 30 percent of all SMEs in the world, and SMEs account for 70 percent of employment worldwide. In emerging markets, these businesses contribute up to 45 percent of total employment and 33 percent of GDP. Although one third of registered SMEs globally are estimated to have been created by women, with close to 100 million women running established businesses, the gap between women and men remains significant. In Kenya, women make about 52 percent of the country’s...

SUMMARY The survey finds that social media platforms are powerful catalysts in the formation and growth of new small- and medium-sized businesses. More SMBs have increased the use of social media and online messaging during the Covid-19 pandemic to communicate with customers, operate remotely, raise capital and make sales. Social media platforms are accelerating economic growth and opportunity across the continent, a new study by Genesis Analytics has shown. The independent study aimed at exploring the impact of the digital economy on small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) was conducted in eight African countries – Kenya, Senegal, Côte d’Ivoire, DR Congo, South Africa, Nigeria, Ghana and Mauritius. The survey explored the adoption and use of social media and messaging platforms; value to SMBs; barriers to usage; and the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. The focus was on the Facebook company technologies, being Facebook app, Instagram, Whatsapp and Messenger. The report shows that surveyed SMBs that use the Facebook apps have younger employees with an average share of 45 percent of employees under 30. Additionally, SMBs using Facebook apps reported a higher frequency of being owned by women, while SMBs in the manufacturing sector ranked the ability to access new foreign markets as the most beneficial advantage of the apps. The survey finds that social media platforms are powerful catalysts in the formation and growth of new SMBs. Some 73 percent of surveyed SMBs report using social media. Of the surveyed SMBs that use the Facebook apps, 84 percent report that the...

Summary All goods destined for South Sudan and the DR Congo from either the port of Mombasa or Dar es Salaam through the border points of Kenya and Uganda will have to be issued an Electronic Cargo Traffic Note Certificates at a minimum cost of $75 for both exports and imports. The fee ranges from $75 to $100 for vehicles, 20ft containers will cost $80 while those of 40ft will be$110. The Northern Corridor, a lifeline of the region, is continuously facing challenges that affect cross border trade, slowing down commerce and causing shocks to economies struggling to recover from effects of the pandemic. South Sudan, Uganda and Kenya are still working through the recent resumption of cargo trucks movement to Juba following weeks of blockade. But just as soon, this month, South Sudan asked the Uganda Revenue Authority to start implementing the Electronic Cargo Traffic Note Certificates (ECTN), adding another layer of costly regulation to be borne by importers and transporters, increasing the cost of using the Northern Corridor. This means all goods destined for South Sudan and the DR Congo from either the port of Mombasa or Dar es Salaam through the border points of Kenya and Uganda will have to be issued an Electronic Cargo Traffic Note Certificates at a minimum cost of $75 for both exports and imports. The fee ranges from $75 to $100 for vehicles, 20ft containers will cost $80 while those of 40ft will be $110. Truck drivers who violate this order will...

The ECOWAS Commission, in collaboration with the International Trade Centre (ITC), organized the 2nd virtual Regional Workshop on the African Trade Observatory (ATO) on 8 September 2021 for Experts from Ministries of Trade and National Statistics Agencies, as well as representatives of Customs Authorities to review status of development of the Observatory. The African Trade Observatory, is one of the five African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) operational instruments along with the rules of origin; the online negotiating forum; the monitoring and elimination of non-tariff barriers; and the digital payment system, that was launched at the African Union 12th Extraordinary Summit held in July 2019 in Niamey – Niger. In his opening remarks, Mr. Kolawole SOFOLA, Acting Director of Trade, on behalf of H.E. Jean Claude KassiBrou, President of the ECOWAS Commission, and Tei KNOZI, Commissioner for Trade, Customs and Free Movement, recalled the importance of the AfCFTA in achieving Sustainable Development Goals, the African Union (AU) Agenda 2063 and deepening the regional integration agenda. Before he declared the meeting open, he highlighted the expected benefits of the ATO for the ECOWAS region which include increased competitiveness, market opportunities for traders, and development of regional value chains and new sectors. This second regional meeting on the African Trade Observatory provided an update on the operational development of the observatory. During the meeting, ITC provided participants with an overview of the observatory, including its main features and how national experts can engage with the platform. The African Trade Observatory seeks to...

SUMMARY The theme for this year’s African Green Revolution Forum (AGRF) to be held in Nairobi from September 6-10 is ‘Pathways to Recovery and Resilient Food Systems’. AGRA has been funded to date by governments and major international donors such as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to “transform African agriculture from a subsistence model to strong businesses that improve the livelihoods. The theme for this year’s African Green Revolution Forum (AGRF) to be held in Nairobi from September 6-10 is ‘Pathways to Recovery and Resilient Food Systems’. Yet 15 years after its convener, the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) was founded in 2006, questions remain about the viability of its high inputs model in addressing Africa’s food insecurity. AGRA has been funded to date by governments and major international donors such as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to “transform African agriculture from a subsistence model to strong businesses that improve the livelihoods of the continent’s farming households”. However, some of the countries where AGRA has focused its efforts have seen continued poverty. African civil society, faith leaders and supporting organisations across Africa have raised concerns about the industrial farming initiatives in a letter to the Gates Foundation. Our view is that we do not need farming ‘solutions’ but rather support to locally appropriate solutions, working in partnership with small-scale farmers in ways that increase climate resilience. TOP-DOWN APPROACHES As can be seen from other top-down approaches that have failed in Africa, such as UNFCCC REDD+...

The Africa World Trade Network (AWTN) has partnered the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat to accelerate intra-regional trade and investment through exhibitions, meetings and events. The partnership seeks to mobilise private sector actors across Africa to drive the attainment of strategic objectives that underpin the Africa Continental Free Trade Area Agreement. The partnership between AWTN and the AfCFTA Secretariat is meant to work towards three common objectives that support continental trade and investment promotions across Africa and promote the overall objectives of the Africa Continental Free Trade Area Agreement: To co-organise and host forums that support continental trade and investment promotions in Africa and promote the overall objectives of the AfCFTA Agreement To support the growth and development of Africa’s commercial community; and To collaborate on matters of common interest, in the pursuance of enhancing intra-trade in the Continent Speaking at the signing ceremony, Board Chair of AWTN, Otwasuom Osae Nyampong VI, said: “Intra-regional trade promises a real win for Africa, and the AfCFTA Secretariat is at the forefront of this significant progress in the continent’s history; it is a second Pan-African victory after Independence. AWTN on its part has recognised this watershed moment and will act as a catalyst to boost trade relations among member states and businesses across the continent.” Otwasuom Osae Nyampong VI emphasised: “Like the AfCFTA Secretariat, AWTN is headquartered in Accra, which has been recognised as a beacon for transformative development in the sub-region. In this partnership, AWTN commits to initiate and escalate...

The Government of Ethiopia is set to introduce a Simplified Trade Regime (STR) to allow its small scale traders to legally trade with Kenya through the Moyale border. The STR is a scheme that allows informal traders to benefit from a simplification of formalities at the border with exoneration from payment of customs duties and taxes referred to transactions under a threshold value which in the COMESA region is currently of USD 2,000 per consignment. Launched by COMESA in 2010, the STR is based on the Revised Kyoto Convention on the Simplification and Harmonisation of Customs Procedures (Transitional Standard 4.13), that encourages Customs to exonerate from payment of customs duties and taxes for transactions under a threshold to be specified by the national legislation. This measure aims at facilitating trade of goods whose value is of negligible amount, by simplifying the paperwork for informal and small-scale traders. One of the conditions for COMESA Member States to implement the STR, is that they must participate to the COMESA Free Trade Area (FTA). However, also those countries not participating to such FTA, like Ethiopia, can develop specific bilateral arrangements or Protocols with their neighbors in order to introduce simplified regimes equivalent to the STR. In practice, such Agreements or Protocols indicate a list, approved by both the exporting and importing country, of products originating from the territory of their counterpart that can be traded duty-free benefiting from simplified procedures at the border, like the lodgment to Customs of a simplified customs declaration...