Maputo, 18th May 2021: The Mozambique Revenue Authority (MRA), in partnership with TradeMark Africa (TMA), has delivered Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) which will be distributed to border authorities at the Mozambiquan and South African border of Ressano Garcia/ Lebombo. The delivery was witnessed by H.E. Taurai Tsama, Mozambique’s Customs Director General, H.E. Mrs. Nuala O’Brien, Ambassador of Ireland to Mozambique, and Mrs. Sarah Love, Deputy Director of Development at the British High Commission in Mozambique. The equipment provided include hand sanitizers, liquid hand washing soap, infrared thermometer, re-usable safety boots, full protective PPE, , reusable masks, plastic face shield, disposable gloves, hand sanitiser dispensers and disinfectant spray bottles This is part of TradeMark Africa’s wider support for mitigation measures against the spread of COVID-19 and continuous trade in Eastern and Southern Africa borders under its Safe Trade Emergency Facility Programme. Today’s symbolic handover will cover the needs of customs, immigration, security, and port health officials at Mozambique borders. Speaking at the ceremony, Sarah Love, Deputy Development Director at the British High Commission in Maputo said: “The UK is funding TMA in Mozambique and Malawi through the Safe Trade programme which is partnering with the Revenue Authority to implement measures to ensure that safe trade can continue during this COVID-19 pandemic. UK funding of £200,000 has enabled the purchase of Personal Protective Equipment for customs and border officials and the development of a joint emergency response to COVID-19 at these locations. This support will ensure a safe working environment for border...

On Tuesday 18, a ceremony was held at the Ressano Garcia border to mark the UK Government’s provision of Covid-19 Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) as part of £200,000 of UK funding to enable safe trade on Mozambique’s borders with South Africa and Malawi. UK funding has been used to purchase PPE for customs and border officials at Calomue and Zobue borders (with Malawi) and Ressano Garcia border (with South Africa) to help maintain a safe working environment and minimise disruptions along key supply chains. The fund is part of the The Safe Trade Programme, which is implemented by TradeMark Africa (TMA), an organisation that works to enhance the trade environment and increase business competitiveness in East Africa. The UK has been providing support to TMA in East Africa since 2010 and has recently supported the organisation to expand its operations to Malawi and Mozambique. Other funding partners include Ireland, Canada and the Netherlands Speaking at the ceremony, Sarah Love, Deputy Development Director at the British High Commission in Maputo said: “The UK is funding TMA in Mozambique and Malawi through the Safe Trade programme which is partnering with the Revenue Authority to implement measures to ensure that safe trade can continue during this COVID-19 pandemic. UK funding of £200,000 has enabled the purchase of Personal Protective Equipment for customs and border officials and the development of a joint emergency response to COVID-19 at these locations. This support will ensure a safe working environment for border agency staff and in turn...

Ian Lessem, Managing Partner at HAVAÍC, investors in early-stage, high-growth technology businesses, notes a significant increase in investment demand for African technology startups. Startups on the continent are at a distinct advantage because they compete out of necessity. As a result, they can, and very often do stand toe to toe with startups in more the established tech hubs of Palo Alto, Singapore, London and Tel Aviv. African innovators face local challenges so pervasive; they simply have no choice but to tackle them head on and become subject matter experts in finding solutions for real world problems like food security, health, education, safety, financial services and logistics. African technology driven solutions borne out of necessity create efficiencies, new products and opportunities, and most importantly solve local challenges that resonate globally. Because of this they have the inherent ability to leap across national boundaries and sidestep the usual rules of cultural friction. With the world having quickly adjusted to the realities of the ongoing global social and economic crisis as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, solutions that solve real world challenges are without a doubt the best opportunities for growth. People and businesses are craving solutions that make their day to day lives easier, better and less frictional, and the pace at which they are adopting technology to do this continues to accelerate. Not only does HAVAÍC support promising startups, it also understands the power of unlocking the potential of Venture Capital (VC) as an investment class in Africa. Investing...

With all the challenges that the Covid-19 pandemic has presented to Africa, there are many exciting changes afoot, and few are potentially more impactful than the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA). The AfCFTA is an exciting game changer agreement for the countries who are signatories. Currently, Africa accounts for just 2% of global trade. And only 17% of African exports are intra-continental, compared with 59% in Asia and 68% in Europe. The pact is designed to create the largest free trade area in the world measured by the number of countries participating. Connecting 1.3 billion people across 55 countries with a combined gross domestic product (GDP) valued at $3.4trn. It will boost regional income by 7% or $450bn, and lift 30 million people out of extreme poverty by 2035. Wages for both skilled and unskilled workers will also be boosted by 10.3% for unskilled workers, and 9.8% for skilled workers. While the Covid-19 pandemic has thrown a harsh spotlight on the vulnerabilities of global supply chains, the putting in place of the AfCFTA agreement couldn’t be more timely for Africa. AfCFTA is a catalyst for new ways of doing business, producing, working and trading within Africa and with the rest of the world. It highlights the significant and increasing commitment of the African Union to reducing poverty through trade. As Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, newly appointed as the WTO director general, recently stated, “Trade is a force for good, and properly harnessed can help lift millions out of poverty and bring...

“Without doubt, AfCFTA could be considered as the game changer for the post COVID-19 economic recovery and transformation of Ghana, if we as a country can harness the numerous benefits of the agreement,” the minister said. To harness the benefits of AfCFTA, he said the government complemented the ongoing industrial transformation agenda by launching the National Export Development Strategy in 2020 to increase non-traditional export revenue to $25.3 billion by 2027. Inauguration Mr Kyerematen was speaking at the inauguration of 36 council members of the Ghana National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GNCCI), in a speech read on his behalf by the Technical Advisor to the Minister, Mr Anthony Nyame-Baafi, on Wednesday, April 28 in Accra. The council members are expected to provide the needed support and guidance through their technical expertise and wealth of social capital to promote activities of the chamber. Private sector’s role The minister called on the private sector to spearhead the economic transformation of the country by taking full advantage of the African single continental market. He said the initiative would boost Ghanaian exports, stimulate investments and innovation, foster structural transformation, improve food security, enhance economic growth, and export diversification, and provide fresh impetus and dynamism to the economic integration of Ghana into the African market. “There are many benefits that Ghana will derive from effective implementation of the AfCFTA, including better harmonisation and coordination of trade between Ghana and other African countries,” he added. He said the government had developed a National AfCFTA Policy...

AfCFTA As countries rebuild their economies following the impact of COVID-19, Africa needs to step up productive and infrastructural integration, stakeholders at a regional presentation of the African Regional Integration Index (ARII) have said. The index, a joint publication of the Economic Commission for Africa, the African Development Bank and the African Union Commission, provides up-to-date data on the status of regional integration in Africa and assesses the level of integration for every regional economic community and its member countries. The Index report underlines the need for a renewed commitment to regional integration within Africa, speakers said. They noted that the beginning of trade under the African Continental Free Trade Area in January 2021, amid the Covid-19 pandemic and its disruptive impact on movement and economies, had thrown this into a sharper focus. Director of Trade at the East African Community Secretariat, Rashid Kibowa, said the Index report has great potential to address the three major challenges currently facing the continent: the Covid-19 pandemic, implementation of the AfCFTA, and poverty reduction. “There is a need for more dialogue on the ARII and methodology issues to expand the scope of coverage of the assessed integration areas. The fundamental issues behind the ARII ought to be whether integration exists for Africa and whether it is effective in terms of achieving poverty reduction and socio-economic transformation for the continent,” said Kibowa. The report, released in May of last year, found that overall scores for countries in Southern and Eastern Africa show huge room...

Tourism is among the industries that have been hit hardest by the COVID-19 crisis. Over a year since the onset of the pandemic, the numbers are staggering: Tourism destinations recorded one billion fewer international arrivals in 2020 than in 2019. A deep decline in international travel led to a loss of about USD 1.3 trillion in export revenues, more than 11 times the loss during the last economic crisis in 2009. 100 to 120 million tourism jobs were put at risk, a large portion in small and medium-sized enterprises. This is a grave concern for developing economies as they chart a course towards recovery. Driven by both public and private sectors, not only is tourism a vital source of foreign currency, it has the potential to serve as a development 'tool' to strengthen supply chains, improve local firm productivity, creates one out of ten jobs and provide income for women and young people. As a former minister for tourism myself, I have seen up close, the value tourism creates for local communities and how sustainable tourism creates economic value while preserving culture and natural assets. At a recent panel on tourism resilience and building forward better, during the WTO's Aid for Trade Stocktaking event last month, we discussed the future of tourism given the current challenges. Industry leaders from Costa Rica, Jordan, Kenya and Sri Lanka shared experiences from their own countries in responding and learning from crises, and insights on how they see the way forward for tourism. Three...

Global Britain should look towards supporting the development of Africa’s digital landscape, argue Pauline Girma and Oona Palmer (LSE). In this post, they explain that given that seven of the ten fastest-growing internet populations are located in Africa, and that it is home to what is the youngest population in the world, the future growth of the global e-commerce market depends upon unlocking the continent’s potential. The British Prime Minister has invited President Ramaphosa of South Africa to join the G7 summit in Cornwall, England in early June. The summit will discuss among other things trade and the digital economy. A number of African states are taking part in the WTO negotiations on digital trade, but South Africa has opposed the whole idea of the current WTO negotiations on the topic. Africa presents both significant opportunities and challenges for those looking to expand e-commerce. Despite changing demographics and improving business environments, which have contributed to rising household consumption, infrastructural and technical constraints continue to undermine efforts to scale e-commerce, and hinder Africa’s integration in the global digital economy. Fewer than a quarter of Africa’s roads are paved according to the World Bank, and even the relatively large markets of Nigeria and Kenya struggle with access to electricity. Moreover, the lack of widespread internet connectivity remains a fundamental barrier to the uptake of e-commerce in Africa, with less than one-third of Africans able to access the Internet. Yet the potential for the widespread adoption of e-commerce to facilitate technological ‘leapfrogging’ has led to...

Maputo, 3rd May: The Mozambique Revenue Authority (MRA) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with TradeMark Africa (TMA) paving the way for TMA expansion into Mozambique. The agreement was signed by the AT Director General of Planning, Studies and International Cooperation, Dr. Augusto Paulo Tacarindua, and TMA Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Frank Matsaert. TMA aims to collaborate with AT: in the establishment of commercial systems and procedures to support the effective and efficient clearance and transit of goods; in the implementation of measures to ensure safe trade at the borders with neighbouring countries through provision of PPEs; in the dissemination of Southern African Development Community (SADC) COVID-19 operational guidelines; strengthening the joint border committee framework; and raising awareness among border agencies and cross border women traders. Furthermore, TMA will replicate its success in contributing to the ease of trading across borders and through its Safe Trade Emergency Facility (Safe Trade) program, support the Government of Mozambique to undertake critical measures along the transport and trade routes that will ensure trade continues safely while protecting livelihoods. TMA CEO Frank Matsaert noted, “We are excited with this new phase of growth that adds an important country and economy into our operations. Our programme will contribute to improved trading environment for Mozambique with its trading partners on key corridors, which as a result, will propel Mozambique into a leading economy and grow prosperity for its citizens.” TMA’s Mozambique programme will be designed to deliver maximum value for money and effectiveness. It will draw...