The Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Cooperatives, has launched an online system to issue import and export permits and licenses in Kenya. The services will be provided by the Agriculture and Food Authority of Kenya (AFA), the government regulatory agency. The system was developed by AFA and TradeMark Africa (TMA) to automate agricultural business processes including issuance of permits and licensing. It has been named the AFA-Integrated Management Information System (AFA-IMIS), an 8-in-1 Single Window Information for Trade (SWIFT) system covering the certification and licensing of trade in cash crops. The system, according to AFA, will provide a platform for delivery of technical and advisory services, market research, product development, regulations and compliance functions for export and import of the cash crops. The development of the system was funded with a contribution of Ksh. 150 million ($1.37 million) by the Government of Denmark. The event was graced by Royal Danish Embassy Counsellor Morgen Strunge Larsen, AFA Director General Mr. Kello Harsama, TMA Senior Director for Trade Environment Mr. Alban Odhiambo and TMA Country Director Mr. Ahmed Farah HSC. Speaking at the event, Director General of AFA Kello Harsama said, “This system will help us serve the agriculture sector well. As AFA we are not only concerned with food that is coming into Kenya, but also food that is being produced in Kenya. Soon we will start surveillance on food grown in Kenya like tomatoes, to enforce regulations on pesticide use and ensure food supplied to markets from our farms...

As the UK forges a new set of global partnerships post-Brexit, questions remain over its commitment to the continent after the reduction in the aid budget. But the UK's minister for Africa James Duddridge argues that African countries see the UK as a long term partner and that historical and financial ties remain as strong as ever. The UK is in global diplomatic realignment, and not just in Europe. While the UK was close to the Chinese under previous prime minister David Cameron, the current executive under Boris Johnson is far closer to the US position; speaking up on the Uyghur genocide and on repression in Hong Kong, and backing away from including Chinese technology companies in core UK communications networks. Will this realignment be visible in Africa? Brexit diplomacy There is now a bloat of foreign powers seeking advantage on the continent, each bringing their own strengths: from the project financing of Chinese infrastructure providers, the technology of the Japanese, the price points of Turkish goods and the agribusiness competence of Brazil. “We are motoring”, says UK minister for Africa James Duddridge. He points to post-Brexit trade agreements signed with 15 African countries and the advantages that the UK can depend on, such as use of English, the attractiveness of the City of London and the long history of UK corporate engagement on the continent. “Yes, there are a lot of players, but more and more we’ll be working in consortium across countries, rather than just having a simple...

TMA’s foray into Ethiopia and Somaliland yields significant gains. The Moyale One-Stop Border Post (OSBP) interconnectivity has now been completed. Trademark East Africa (TMA) has made significant strides in unlocking the Horn of Africa’s transport corridors in Ethiopia and Somaliland. TMA launched the Unlocking Prosperity in the Horn of Africa programme in October 2018, to harness the trade and economic potential of the Berbera Corridor between Somaliland-Ethiopia. Although the region is strategically on one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes and trading routes, the 2018 World Bank Logistics Performance Report ranked the logistics as extremely inefficient yet raising the cost of trade. The Moyale One Stop Border Post (OSBP) interconnectivity has now been completed. It was launched in December last year in a colourful event that was officiated by President Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya and Dr Abiy Ahmed, Prime Minister, the Federal Republic of Ethiopia at the Moyale border point. The border point is part of the LAPSSET project, and is situated approximately 800 Kilometres North of Nairobi, and 780 Kilometres South of Addis Ababa. Construction of the OSBP facility was completed in 2018, after which the facility was connected to appropriate ICT Hardware and Software to enable it to run smoothly as a modern facility. Cross-border procedures were reviewed to prepare for their commencement and staff on both sides of the border trained on the new procedures. The launch of the OSBP operations were, however, interrupted by COVID-19 induced travel restrictions, TMA said in a recent brief on the...

Summary Covid-19 is daunting, complex, and ubiquitous. It is not just a public health matter; but also affects progress in the fight against poverty in Africa, due to its direct impact on jobs and economic performance. We are living in times of great uncertainty, fuelled by the onset of Covid-19. Despite this, we have maintained our focus on supporting trade and building prosperity, creating jobs, and reducing poverty in eastern Africa. Covid-19 is daunting, complex, and ubiquitous. It is not just a public health matter; but also affects progress in the fight against poverty in Africa, due to its direct impact on jobs and economic performance. It has catalysed rethinking of global supply chains, shaken traditional patterns of partnerships, but also stimulated unanticipated innovation. It has magnified the importance of trade as a driver for development and building resilient economies. It is noteworthy that projected economic growth has more than halved in many countries, particularly in East Africa. TradeMark Africa has responded by creating a Covid-19 mitigation programme that leveraged our 10 years of experience, in addition to accelerate core programming with higher levels of innovation and forged new partnerships to address challenges to eastern Africa’s recovery. In 2019-20, we begun with an overview of the innovative Safe Trade Emergency Facility (Safe Trade) that we developed and rolled out when Covid-19 first hit East Africa. This was rolled out with the support of our development partners in the European Union, Finland, Canada, Denmark, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. The...

The COVID-19 pandemic has claimed over 100,000 African lives and nearly 4 million cases have been recorded so far. Africa’s COVID-19 story is one of nuances. Only 10 countries account for over 80% of all cases, island nations suffer peculiar impacts, rural-urban differentiation is evident, socioeconomic implications reveal gender biases, and trade patterns matter. There is no single Africa COVID-19 story. Addressing COVID-19 in Africa and designing appropriate remedial strategies requires a thorough understanding of Africa’s diverse contexts and an appreciation of the role of regional integration in defining solutions. UNDP Africa’s new report: “Analysing long-term socio-economic impacts of COVID-19 across diverse African contexts” examines the effect COVID-19 will have on macro-economic development in 10 African countries by 2030 and 2050. The study highlights the multifaceted economic and social consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic across Africa, including on human development indicators, economic interdependence, and growth and resilience patterns. Changes in mortality, economic growth and international financial flows in Angola, Cabo Verde, Chad, DRC, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mali, Mauritius, Nigeria and South Africa are analysed in the document. The report also assesses the longer-term impacts on trade, economic growth and health indicators and proposes actionable solutions. Read original article

A financial agreement worth €10.5 million between the Government of Finland and TradeMark Africa (TMA) has been signed. The Government of Finland, represented by its Ambassador to Kenya H.E. Erik Lundberg, reiterated its commitment to supporting regional trade and the fight against COVID-19 pandemic in the East African region. The event was officiated by Kenya’s Ministry of East Africa and Regional Development Principal Secretary Dr. Kevit Desai and witnessed by TMA Board Chair Amb. Erastus Mwencha, TMA CEO Mr. Frank Matsaert and TMA Country Director Mr. Ahmed Farah. Through this new Finnish funding, TMA will scale up support to governments to adopt ICT for Trade systems in key trade agencies that contribute to the successful implementation of National Single Windows. TMA has laid frameworks and forged partnerships to support multimodal transport corridors which not only reduce costs associated with trade, but also reduce the carbon footprint of transport. Lake and rail transport produce much less emission per tonne of cargo moved as compared to road transport. Efforts will go towards supporting digital trade corridors, safe sanitary and phytosanitary trade corridors, bolster trade remedies structures at national, regional and continental levels, investments in standards quality infrastructure centres of excellence, scale up of regional authorised economic operator schemes and authorised supply chains frameworks. This infrastructure will be critical in reducing barriers to trade and supporting smooth implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). The new funding will build up on results that have been achieved in previous programmes funded by...

In Summary Through this new Finnish funding, TMA will scale up support to governments to adopt ICT for Trade systems in key trade agencies. TMA has laid frameworks and forged partnerships to support multimodal transport corridors which reduce costs associated with trade. TradeMark Africa (TMA) and Finland have signed a financial agreement worth €10.5 million(Sh1.38billion) that will help in supporting regional trade and the fight against Covid-19. Through this new Finnish funding, TMA will scale up support to governments to adopt ICT for Trade systems in key trade agencies that contribute to the successful implementation of National Single Window. TMA is focussed on reducing non- tariff barriers that hinder trade within the East Africa region. It has laid frameworks and forged partnerships to support multimodal transport corridors which not only reduce costs associated with trade, but also reduce the carbon footprint of transport. Ministry of East Africa and Regional Development PS Kevit Desai appreciated Finland’s continued support to promoting efficient and increased trade in the region and the continued fight against the Covid-19 pandemic. “The TMA Kenya Country Programme has facilitated interventions to reduce transport time and increase import and export volumes in Kenya. This has directly contributed to Kenya’s consistent improvement in the trading across borders,” said Desai. Efforts will go towards supporting digital trade corridors, safe sanitary and phytosanitary trade corridors and bolster trade remedies structures at national, regional and continental levels. Support will also be channelled towards investments in standards quality, setting up infrastructure centres of excellence,...

One of the unsung highlights of Finance Minister Tito Mboweni’s Budget 2021 speech was his announcement that the border posts at South Africa’s six busiest land borders were to be upgraded and expanded. It was also heartening to hear that these one-stop border posts will be developed using a public-private partnership model, as fresh ideas, capital, skills and system innovation are sorely required. It was even more encouraging to learn that Beitbridge, which was built in 1929 and last upgraded in 1995, will be the first to receive an overhaul so as to “eliminate the dreadful scenes we witnessed recently”. Although there is some dispute as to whether the congestion at the Zimbabwe-South Africa border could be blamed directly for several deaths during the recent peak crossing period in December/January, the blockages were nevertheless deeply dehumanising and economically debilitating. Holiday travellers in taxis and private vehicles lacked food, water and basic ablution facilities as some of them waited days, rather than hours, to cross. The gridlock also came at a high cost to those freight companies that hoped to use the crossing to shorten their trips to the Zimbabwe market. From a pure economic perspective, however, the sooner more streamlined infrastructure and systems are introduced to facilitate freight movement at all these land borders, the better. Absent such an overhaul, it will not be possible for South African firms to fully begin tapping the trade opportunities opening up to them as a result of the implementation earlier this year of...

The distinctive campaign named ‘30 days of women in business’ will run on radio and social media channels over the next one month, and aims to promote the platform in Member States where COMESA is implementing the 50 Million African Women Speak Project The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) has launched a regional campaign to popularise a platform for women in a business known as 50 Million African Women Speak (50MAWSP). The platform is an information and networking hub for women which provides a one-stop-shop for them to start, grow and scale up their businesses and to access financial and non-financial services. The distinctive campaign named ‘30 days of women in business’ will run on radio and social media channels over the next one month, and aims to promote the platform in Comoros, Djibouti, DR Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Eswatini, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Seychelles, Sudan, Tunisia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe—the Member States where COMESA is implementing the 50 Million African Women Speak Project. The campaign invites women in the region to log onto the platform at www.womenconnect.org or to download the 50MAWSP app from the Google or Apple stores. To participate, women will be required to register on the platform and to then submit short stories about their most admired businesswomen giving the reasons why, and what they would tell them if they had a chance to meet them in person. The most compelling of these submissions will be published on the platform and those who submitted them...

Newly appointed UK Trade Envoy to Zambia, Laurence Robertson MP, yesterday completed a successful and productive first visit to Zambia. Conducted virtually, the visit included meetings with the Minister of Commerce, Trade and Industry, the Ministries of Finance and Mines and a range of UK and Zambian businesses. The theme of the visit was to build stronger UK-Zambia trading partnerships, increase investment between the two countries and support Zambia in taking advantage of regional and global trading opportunities. Appointed by the British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson in December 2020, the Trade Envoy has responsibility for enhancing and building on Zambia and Britain’s investment and trading relationship. UK-Zambia bilateral trade currently stands at over £150m, alongside significant UK investment into Zambia, with aspirations to increase this substantially in coming years through increased British business participation in Zambia’s economic recovery programme. A particular focus of the visit was the mining industry and how UK partnerships can build more sustainability and increase wider economic benefits for Zambia. Recent increases in global climate commitments have helped support resurgence in copper prices as well as demand for other metals such as cobalt and nickel which are critical to support clean energy development. As part of the visit, the Trade Envoy was briefed by members of the UK Parliament All Party Parliamentary Group on Critical Minerals in terms of the role of copper and other metals and the opportunities to support Zambia make more of its mineral resources. In the mining industry, the Trade Envoy met...