The African Union has launched an advocacy campaign to encourage more countries to ratify the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), ahead of the January 2019 deadline to implement the agreement. A business guide developed by the International Trade Centre (ITC) was launched to help the private sector and policymakers better understand and navigate the agreement. Albert Muchanga, the AU Commissioner of Trade and Industry, said the bloc was confident of getting the 15 remaining member states to ratify the agreement by December. So far, Kenya, Rwanda, eSwatini, Chad, Niger, Guinea and Ghana have ratified the AfCFTA, while three countries — Egypt, Kenya and Uganda — have ratified the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (Comesa), Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the East African Community (EAC) Tripartite Free Trade Area. At least 22 ratifications are needed for the AfCFTA to enter into force and 14 are required for the TFTA. Comesa Secretary General Chileshe Kapwepwe said overlapping activities between the TFTA and the AfCFTA needed to be harmonised. Ms Kapwepwe, who is the chair of the TFTA Task Force, said closer co-ordination between the AU and the regional economic communities will be key to successful implementation of both agreements. “The narrative of the regional economic communities being the building blocks of the ACFTA should be promoted to ensure complementarity,” she said. Source The East Africa

Kenya will have to wait longer for the East African Community (EAC) to make the much-awaited review of the Common External Tariff (CET). This is as negotiations between member States drag on. Kenya, which since September last year has been pushing hard to have the review fast-tracked, will have to wait for an indefinite period, as Uganda and Tanzania ask for more time to access the impact of such a review on their local economies. Export Promotion Council (EPC) Chief Executive Peter Biwott said the review request at the hands of the EAC secretariat would have happened last September but States are holding back and asking for more time to study its impact. “I believe no country in the region is opposed to reviewing CET and making it more accommodative. But we have regional finance ministers who are asking for more time and that is what is dragging the negotiations,” said Mr Biwott yesterday at the sidelines of the Intra-Africa Trade conference in Nairobi. In 2005, when EAC countries adopted a Customs Union, they committed themselves to the current CET, which Kenya is now demanding to be reviewed. The CET comprises of a triple band structure where raw materials and capital goods traded among EAC countries do not attract any tax. Avoid fake news! Subscribe to the Standard SMS service and receive factual, verified breaking news as it happens. Text the word 'NEWS' to 22840 The second structure is where intermediate goods used to process a final product for example...

A chara, – Those proposing that Ireland should leave the EU have pointed to Ireland’s low level of exports to non-European markets, and especially so-called “emerging” economies, as representing a major opportunity for exploiting these markets in the event of Irexit. This viewpoint fails to appreciate that foreign (mainly American) firms account for 90 per cent of Ireland’s exports. Where these send their exports is determined by their global production and marketing strategies. Foreign firms, for the most part, use Ireland as a base for serving the so-called EMEA (Europe, Middle East, Africa) market, the great bulk of which is accounted for by the EU. In 2016, two-thirds of Ireland’s exports of goods and services went to the EMEA region. The EU accounted for over four fifths of these exports. For some American firms based in Ireland, the US itself is understandably an important market. Hence, that country accounted for almost one fifth of 2016 exports. This means that the rest of the world absorbed just a sixth of Ireland’s exports in that year. However, the American firms operating out of Ireland typically have similar operations serving the other major global regions (the Americas and Asia/Oceania) from bases within these regions. Thus, the firms in question have little reason to expand beyond the EMEA market, since to do so would be to compete with their parallel operations elsewhere. Leaving the EU, therefore, would greatly undermine probably the key reason why American firms locate in Ireland, with little prospect of alternative...

Construction of the Sh40 billion Kipevu Oil Terminal (KOT) at the Port of Mombasa is expected to begin in earnest following the award of the contract to China Communications Construction Company. Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) acting managing director Daniel Manduku said the contract was awarded after the tender committee completed due diligence weeks ago. The new terminal will have the capacity to handle four vessels of up to 100,000 DWT (Dead Weight Tonnage) and will have a Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) line that is expected to help stabilise gas supply in the country. “We are soon embarking on construction of the Kipevu Oil Terminal (KOT) for discharge of fuel to the tanks owned by Kenya Pipeline Company and other oil companies at a cost of about $400 million (Sh40 billion),” Dr Manduku said. Mombasa port currently has only two oil terminals that are ageing and too small to handle large quantities of imported oil and gas. “The KOT will supplement the two facilities at Shimanzi and the old Kipevu terminal,” Dr Manduku said. Construction of the oil terminals is part of KPA’s expansion programme that is seen to be critical to securing the country’s energy needs. Dr Manduku said KPA has also started construction of the second container terminal using a Sh30 billion loan from Japan International Co-operation Agency (JICA). Construction of the first phase of the second container terminal, with additional capacity of 550,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) every year, is complete. Dr Manduku said the second phase will...

NAIROBI, SEPTEMBER 13 ―  Kenya is hoping to seal major trade deals and boost its bilateral ties with Turkey as Africa moves to this years’ Turkey-Africa Economic and Business Forum (TABEF 2018) in Istanbul. The country’s private sector lobby institution-The Kenya Private Sector Alliance is leaving nothing to chance as it rallies business entities in the country to ensure representation at the forum, which will bring together companies from over 50 African Countries, over 1,500 Turkish Companies and over 7,000 participants. The forum which will include Business to Business meets and match making between African companies and Turkish companies from all sectors, will also provide a platform for possible intra-African deals. “KEPSA together with the Turkish Embassy in Nairobi extend an exclusive invitation for you to attend the Turkey-Africa Economic and Business Forum to be held under the auspices of H.E. Recep Tayyip ERDOGAN, President of the Republic of Turkey at Istanbul Lutfi Kirdar ICEC in Istanbul,” THE Kepsa secretariat said in an invite to the business community. The forum is scheduled for October 9 – October 11. During the three days event, African countries and their respective institutions will get to discuss opportunities, establish relationships with Turkish public and private operators, demonstrate expertise and business while meeting Turkish and regional managers and economic experts. The forum is being jointly organized by the Ministry of Trade of the Republic of Turkey and Foreign Economic Relations Board of Turkey (DEiK) with the collaboration of African Union Commission (AUC) under the motto of...

The Kenya Ports Authority has started the process of developing the 7,413 acres Mombasa Special Economic Zone in Dongo Kundu, Likoni constituency. KPA acting managing director Daniel Manduku on Wednesday said they will construct one berth and a road on the proposed land. The authority with the support of the Japan International Cooperation Agency is in the process of undertaking an environmental impact assessment of the port infrastructure of Mombasa Special Economic Zone. Mombasa residents have been invited to share their views. Manduku said the zone will open up Mombasa to multi-national industries, which will employ thousands of Kenyans. “We have identified 3,000 hectares ( 7,413 acres) owned by KPA in Dongo Kundu, where we shall develop a special economic zone. We are already doing the feasibility to put up the first berth and a road,” he said. Manduku said Kenya must start developing its own export market, because currently it stands at 15 per cent, therefore the special economic zone shall encourage private sectors to come in and set up export companies. “In developing that SEZ, we shall encourage the private sector to come and set up industries, which will create a lot of job opportunities,” he said. Manduku said the special zone is a big opportunity to Kenyans because a typical industry will employ between 200-300 people. “One industry can sit pretty on a hectare, how many companies can be built on 3,000 hectares, do your math. Those will be very many companies that will provide employment to...

Construction of the first berth of the Sh30 billion Dongo Kundu free port and economic zone is set to start, giving employment hopes to hundreds of youths who have lost transportation jobs to the Standard Gauge Railway. Kenya Ports Authority managing director Daniel Manduku said the project's feasibility study by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) is about to be concluded. “In conjunction with the Trade and Industrialisation ministry, we have identified 3,000 acres owned by KPA where we shall develop a Free Economic Zone. "Soon we shall launch the construction of the first berth of Dongo Kundu port which will be connected to the second phase of the Sh30 billion Dongo Kundu bypass," he said on the sidelines of the International Association of Maritime Economists conference in Mombasa. EMPLOYMENT The project will create more than 1,000 direct jobs and at least 2,000 indirectly, he added. "The project among other initiatives will create thousands of jobs, set up about 1,000 light industries and spur growth in the port city of Mombasa,” Dr Manduku said, adding that he expected the port to handle increased local exports. “In developing the Special Economic Zones, we shall be encouraging the private sector to set up industries. The targeted area is enough to accommodate about 1,000 of them. Those who have been lamenting that they are losing the port business because most of the goods are destined for Nairobi can now think of investing in the Dongo Kundu Free trade project so that they can...

The ports operator is grappling with congestion of cargo at its Inland Container Depot in Nairobi. This has prompted the Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) to transfer some containers to alternative storage areas. KPA Managing Director Daniel Manduku yesterday said the Inland Container Depot (ICD) was weighed down by about 10,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (teus) of containers and that excess cargo was being transferred to five periphery storage areas in the city. The ports chief blamed the pile-up on delays by cargo owners to take away their goods after they are delivered to the facility via the Standard Gauge Railway from the port of Mombasa. Speaking on the sidelines of the International Association of Maritime Economists conference in Mombasa, Dr Manduku explained that 3,300 teus had been at the ICD for more than the required 21 days. Another 845 teus were set to be destroyed by the Kenya Revenue Authority. “We have over 4,000 teus as long-stay at the ICD that are currently being transferred to five periphery storage areas in Nairobi to ease congestion,” Manduku said. He said congestion at the port of Mombasa had been contained and that the current 10,582 teus there represented 50 per cent capacity. In an advertisement, the Kenya International Freight and Warehousing Association (Kifwa) said its members were incurring huge losses, ranging from container detention fees, and storage charges to KPA to increased corruption rate at the port and ICD. According to Kifwa chairman William Ojonyo, the reasons for the delays in picking up...

TradeMark Africa (TMA) expanded into Ethiopia will bring with it a host of benefits into the country. The organisation recently signed a Host Country Agreement (HCA) with the government of Ethiopia  paving the way for TMAs expansion into the country. Since its formation, TMA has made a significant contribution to this growth by delivering large scale impact in its highly successful first strategic phase which was completed in December 2017. Ethiopia’s Foreign Affairs State Minister Professor Kassu and Transport State Minister Hiwot Mosisa represented the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia while TMA was represented by its CEO, Mr Frank Matsaert. According to a statement by TMA, the HCA now paves way for the establishment of TMA’s Ethiopia Country Programme, with physical presence in Ethiopia, budget and staff to manage the country programme. These are the three areas of focus once the organisation sets base in the country: Reducing trade costs on corridors: This focuses on the transport, logistics and infrastructure of particularly busy corridors (ports, roads and border posts), to reduce the cost of trade and transport. Improving the trading environment: This focuses largely on introducing new electronic systems to streamline ports, borders and corridors and to ease and fasten movement of goods and people. It includes wide policy and regulatory measures that apply global best practice to trade facilitation and export markets. Increasing private sector competitiveness: This focuses on increasing the role of business in public policy making on trade, and ensuring the private sector takes advantage of an improving trading environment, especially...

The Sh20 billion Shimoni Port project on the sea border of Kenya and Tanzania border will be undertaken through a public-private partnership (PPP). The fishing port of Shimoni is one of the 11 small facilities, Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) wants to develop countrywide in an ambitious multibillion shillings programme. This revelation by KPA on Wednesday has attracted divergent views from players, with those supporting it saying it would promote trade. “We want to make Shimoni Port a fishing port so we will build a multi-purpose berth that will incorporate fishing and handle other cargo. “We will also do cold storage facilities at Shimoni and value addition facilities, including those for fish processing. That, however, will be done under PPP arrangement,” said acting KPA managing director Daniel Manduku yesterday, in an exclusive interview with the Nation. Source Nation Media