In the Business Think Tank today, Smart24 TV’s Kamweya Tushabe will encourage our panel of experts to talk about the ‘Economic Contribution of Women in Informal Cross-border Trading’. The panelists are: Jane Nalunga, the executive director of SEATINI Jacob Siminyu, the spokesperson of the ministry of Internal Affairs Connie Kihembo, the CEO of Uganda Women Entrepreneurs Association Limited (UWEAL) Sarah Jesca Agwang, programme coordinator (Women’s Economic Justice and Empowerment) at Uganda Women’s Network (UWONET) Sheila Kawamara, the chief executive of EASSI ( The Eastern African Sub-Regional Support Initiative for the Advancement of Women. Follow this link to watch the event live Before Covid-19, Uganda enjoyed a booming cross-border informal trade, 80% of which was being done by women as their sole source of income. Research by the International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development (ICTSD), (2018) notes that informal cross-border trade is still rampant at over 40% of all intra-regional trade Over the past decade, increasing the participation of women in cross-border trade has been a key focus area for stakeholders in trade, including the Government, through the ministries of trade and the East African Community affairs and development partners, including TradeMark Africa (TMA), USAID and the Eastern African Sub Regional Support Initiative for the Advancement of Women. Policies have been instituted to increase the participation of informal cross-border women traders to boost their incomes, improve living standards, and contribute to the country’s overall economic development. Data from the Bank of Uganda (BOU) indicates that informal cross-border exports fetched the country...

Unlike anything before it, the Covid-19 pandemic has underlined the importance of harmonising legislation governing the transport of goods across borders. This was the message from all four speakers at the second webinar hosted by the Southern African Transport Conference (SATC) earlier this month. The webinar explored Covid-19’s impact on freight and logistics, and was addressed by Transnet group chief executive Portia Derby, TradeMark Africa senior director of transport Abhishek Sharma, and International Road Transport Union senior advisors Jens Hügel and Kazeem Asayesh. The view of every speaker was that harmonising the legislation that governs cross-border good transit would bolster economies by reducing transport and warehousing costs, and thus increase individual countries’ resilience in the face of economic crises. Sub-Saharan Africa had taken several hard knocks due to the pandemic, which had caused significant supply chain disruptions that had led to shortages of vital commodities such as food and medicines, said Sharma. “The sub-Saharan region is not the only one to feel the negative effects of the pandemic on freight and logistics,” said Hügel. The IRU is a global road transport organisation representing companies that provide transport, mobility and logistics services in more than 80 countries across the world. Globally, movement restrictions, health screening, and border controls and closures – put in place to ward off the virus that caused Covid-19 – had led to an estimated 18% average decline in annual turnover for goods transported by road, Hügel said. The Asia-Pacific and Middle East-North Africa regions are the worst...

Despite Africa’s informal sector employing more than 80 per cent of the workforce, it receives little or no attention when it comes to government’s policy plans implementation. This neglect leaves it exposed to the ravages of unavailable financing or expensive credit which slows down the achievement of the sector’s full potential in growing the various economies. While this is the general view, it gets even worse for women-owned enterprises which struggle from age-old patriarchal approaches to doing business as well as the delicate balancing act that women have to innately learn since they are the ones who also run their homes in many cases. But despite all these challenges, women in business have a big role to play in a post-covid-19 Africa and could significantly reduce the continent’s high dependence on imports of essential food, medical and pharmaceutical items. The UN Economic Commission for Africa’s Mama Keita who is the Director of ECA in Eastern Africa says, “As we are building back our economies after covid and are seeking to turn vulnerabilities into opportunities, let us recall that intra-Africa trade is still very low at less than 20 per cent and that women entrepreneurs have a big role to play in boosting this.” Speaking in a virtual meeting organized by the Office of the Special Envoy for the Great Lakes, Keita who presented the socio-economic effects of covid-19 in the Great Lakes Region emphasized how reduced economic activities stemming from lockdowns, curfew and disruption in international trade affected the region. She...

Last week, the Africa Trade Policy Centre (ATPC) of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) in collaboration with the UK-based Overseas Development Institute (ODI) has released a working paper entitled “Africa trade and COVID-19: The supply chain dimension”. The paper investigates the impacts of the pandemic on trade and value chains in Africa, with a special focus on Ethiopia and Kenya, and the pharmaceutical sector. It also makes specific policy recommendations on how the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) can be reconfigured to reflect the new realities and risks of the 21st century. In this article, we focus on Chapter 2, which examines the impact of the lockdown and social distancing policies – in response to the COVID‑19 crisis – on trade volumes, commodity prices, services and investment. I. Impact on cross‑border trade In the fight against COVID‑19, almost all African countries, albeit to a differing degree, have now suspended international flights, introduced a14‑day quarantine for entrants into the country and closed land and/or maritime borders. A total of 38 of Africa’s 54 countries have now announced land closures of some form, and 17 countries have announced the closure of maritime borders. Typically, these closures are targeted at the movement of people, and there are exemptions for the movement of emergency and essential freight supplies under very strict conditions, including mandatory testing, the sanitisation of trucks, limited crew members on trucks and designated transit resting areas. This has led to an abrupt slowdown and delays in cross‑border trade,...

NEW AFRICA BUSINESS NEWS (NABN) Accra, Ghana– The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), East Africa Community (EAC), and Southern African Development Community (SADC) have developed a regional electronic Corridor Trip Monitoring System (CTMS) which will allow cross border road transport operators, drivers, regulators and law enforcement agencies to record and monitor driver wellness data such as COVID-19 test results has been approved by the Tripartite group. The CTMS will also enable operators to track the driver, crew and truck movements against preapproved route plans. The CTMS is supported by the current legal and regulatory framework existing both at regional and national level, which include inter-alia: REC Treaties, Protocols and Agreements, Corridor Agreements, Bilateral Road Transport Agreements as well as National COVID19 regulations being implemented by Tripartite Member/Partner States. The system will eventually be reinforced by the legal provisions in the Tripartite Multilateral Cross Border Road Transport Agreement adopted by the Tripartite Sectorial Ministerial Committee on Infrastructure held in Lusaka in October 2019. Director of Infrastructure at COMESA Secretariat Mr. Baptiste Mutabazi revealed in Lusaka that the CTMS will enable operator, vehicle and driver information to be readily available along regional transport corridors at the roadside and at border posts to all regulatory and law enforcement agencies. New Africa Business News Africa’s Fastest Growing Global Newspaper. Forward www.newafricabusinessnews.com He added that the CTMS is being developed and deployed in a phased manner and was first released in June this year. It will be piloted on a section of the Trans...

Africa loses an estimated $670 million in rejected exports annually due to contamination by aflatoxin. Contamination of the cereal products by the highly-poisonous chemical results in the exports failing to meet the required standards. By wreaking havoc in food stores, the highly poisonous also causes huge losses in trade revenues. This was revealed early this week during the signing of an agreement by two international organizations to fight aflatoxin in Eastern Africa. The pact by the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) and the Eastern African Grain Council (EAGC) will focus aims to contain aflatoxin contamination in the grains. “This will ensure the grains are safe for human and livestock consumption and meet export standards,” IITA said yesterday in a statement. Aflatoxin is a highly poisonous chemical produced by a naturally occurring fungus known as ‘Aspergillus flavus’ and has lately wreaked havoc on the food stores. The fungus is found in soils and attacks important crops such as maize and groundnuts while in the field and in storage when they are not dried and stored properly. Besides negative impact on export trade and food security, the chemical poses a serious health threat to both human beings and animals as a result of consuming contaminated foods. “An estimated $670m is lost in rejected export products from Africa is lost each year due to contamination by aflatoxin,” said the Partnership for Aflatoxin Control in Africa (PACA). The lobby is currently spearheading the fight against the fungus whose havoc has also adversely impacted...

According to the report from the survey among the top three challenges faced by African countries during the pandemic are reduced opportunities to meet new customers drop in demand for products and services, as well as lack of cash flow. African businesses are shifting towards new technologies in response to the ongoing pandemic, according to a new report published by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA). The UNECA and the International Economics Consulting Ltd jointly published the report which is the second comprehensive survey on the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic impact across Africa, according to UNECA. The online survey was conducted from June 16 to July 20 to provide insights into the effects of the pandemic on economic activity for businesses across the region. The survey mainly identified challenges encountered by African businesses as well as their responses to mitigate the adverse impact of the pandemic. According to the report from the survey among the top three challenges faced by African countries during the pandemic are reduced opportunities to meet new customers drop in demand for products and services, as well as lack of cash flow. “Companies have faced serious disruptions in both supply and market due to COVID-19, with unfair pricing seen as a major concern,” the report read, while feedback from companies about government assistance “is mixed with nearly two-thirds of the respondents indicating from moderate to no satisfaction,” it said. According to the report, “companies are currently working at about half their capacity” while...

A new information note published by the WTO Secretariat highlights how trade in goods and services has been affected by temporary border closures and travel restrictions linked to the COVID-19 pandemic. It describes how the cross-border mobility of individuals plays an important role in both the cross-border provision and consumption of services and in manufacturing value chains. The paper notes that sweeping travel barriers introduced in the early stages of the pandemic have given way to more fine-tuned policies aimed at allowing through “essential” foreign workers, or creating quarantine-free “travel bubbles” among partners. Nevertheless, mobility barriers have had a particularly heavy impact on tourism and education services, as well as on trade in goods, due to their effect on transport services and on information and transaction costs. The paper notes that international cooperation has a potentially important role to play in minimizing the economic impact of mobility restrictions. For instance, exchanging information on lessons learnt about mobility restrictions and trade could help WTO members foster greater resilience in the face of future crises. Such an exercise could help with identifying options to implement travel measures that meet public health protection objectives while minimizing the negative effects on trade. Key points International trade and investment have always relied on the cross-border mobility of individuals. To contain the spread of COVID-19, many WTO members imposed temporary border closures and travel restrictions. The severe restrictions on cross-border movement are not motivated by trade considerations but by public health reasons. Nevertheless, they have had...

The European Union (EU) Ambassador to Kenya H.E. Simon Mordue is on a two-day visit of Mombasa. On Thursday 20th August, he handed over Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs) to Kenya Ports Authority to support its fight against COVID-19. The Ambassador was hosted by Mombasa Governor H.E Ali Hassan Joho, Permanent Secretary Ministry of East Africa Community (EAC) Kevit Desai, Kenya Ports Authority Managing Director Rashid Salim, and TMA Kenya Country Director, Ahmed Farah. Today’s PPE’s delivery will meet the needs of 2,730 Kenya Ports Authority staff, Port Police, Kenya Revenue Authority staff, Port health staff and sustain them for 60 days. The 2730 staff were prioritised as they are the first responders and most vulnerable dealing with port health, first aiders and handling of cargo as it arrives. The PPE’s include Reusable masks, Hand sanitisers, Hand washing points, Disinfectant spray, Infrared Thermometer, Reusable Safety Boots, Full protective PPE for front line health workers, N95 face masks and face shields, as agreed with KPA in consultation with KRA and port health and advice from medical agencies at regional and international levels. The European Union is the largest donor to Kenya’s component of TMA’s Safe Trade Emergency Facility (STEF) programme with a contribution of KES 600 million (EUR 5 million). Its under this programme that the PPE delivery has been made as part EU’s wider support for mitigation against the spread of COVID-19 and promotion of continuous safe trade in Kenya. The delivery to Port of Mombasa is critical as the port...

ADDIS ABABA, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNEAC) on Friday said that African women in business have a big role to play in a post-COVID-19 Africa. The statement was made by Mama Keita, Director of the UNECA in East Africa, during a regional virtual dialogue that aimed to address the economic and social challenges met by women and girls as a result of COVID-19 pandemic, with a focus on economic empowerment of women, according to an ECA statement issued on Friday. The ECA director emphasized that "African business women could significantly reduce the continent's high dependence on imports of essential food, medical and pharmaceutical items." Keita, after presenting the socio-economic effects of the COVID-19, also underscored how reduced economic activities stemming from lockdown, curfew as well as disruption in international trade affected the region. She also appealed for innovative policies and initiatives that could make a difference for women. "As we are building back our economies after COVID-19 and are seeking to turn vulnerabilities into opportunities, let us recall that intra-Africa trade is still very low at less than 20 percent and that women entrepreneurs have a big role to play in boosting this," said Ms Keita. Xia Huang, Special Envoy of the United Nations Secretary-General for the Great Lakes Region of Africa, also acknowledged the disproportionate and negative impact of the pandemic on women and girls, especially in the economic sphere, and stressed the need to place women at the center of all...