Uganda has refused to budge on its opposition to mandatory use of the Naivasha Inland Container Depot as directed by Transport Cabinet Secretary James Macharia. This is even as Covid-19 infections among truck drivers soar. Last week, Kenya announced Naivasha dry port as the transshipment centre for all transit cargo. This was one of the measures it said would help contain spread of the virus. Covid-19 testing numbers for Mombasa obtained by Saturday Nation show that over 200 truck drivers are among the 653 positive cases recorded by the county, a 30 per cent share, showing how fragile the situation is for the transport and logistics sector. Since May 30, more than 60 drivers have tested positive for the coronavirus in Mombasa, as the government plans to start targeted mass testing for an estimated 2,500 drivers. On Thursday, Uganda, which is the Mombasa port’s biggest customer, said Kenya should suspend compulsory evacuation of cargo direct from Mombasa to the Naivasha Inland Container Depot (ICD) since the facility is not ready for use and has no basic amenities to facilitate trade. Uganda’s Minister for Works and Transport Gen Edward Katumba asked Mr Macharia to rescind his decision and address issues raised by transporters before implementing the directive. “I would like to reaffirm the Uganda government’s commitment to use the Naivasha ICD in the spirit of regional integration. On the other hand, I would like also to reaffirm that the findings of the technical team in their visit to the ICD need...

NAMANGA, Kenya — They haul food, fuel and other essential supplies along sometimes dangerous roads during tough economic times. But Africa's long-distance truckers say they are increasingly being accused of carrying something else: the coronavirus. While hundreds of truckers have tested positive for the virus in recent weeks, the drivers say they are being stigmatized and treated like criminals, being detained by governments and slowing cargo traffic to a crawl. That has created a challenge for governments in much of sub-Saharan Africa, where many borders remain closed by the pandemic, on how to strike a balance between contagion and commerce. Countries are struggling to reach common ground. “When I entered Tanzania, in every town that I would drive through, they would call me, ’You, corona, get away from here with your corona!’” said Abdulkarim Rajab, a burly Kenyan who has been driving trucks for 17 years and recalls when drivers were being accused of spreading HIV during that outbreak. Rajab and his load of liquefied gas spent three days at the Kenya-Tanzania border, where the line of trucks waiting to be cleared stretched into the distance and wound around the lush hills overlooking the crossing at Namanga. Tanzania closed the border there this week, protesting Kenya's efforts to re-test all incoming truckers, including those who even had certificates showing they had been tested in the previous 14 days. It was the second time the frontier was closed in less than a month and was taken after many Tanzanian truckers with...

United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (Addis Ababa) Nairobi — The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is still the agreement with great potential to foster regional economic integration and economic growth, and take Africa to the next level, even in the midst of a crippling coronavirus crisis, panellists on a COVID-19 Recovery Mechanism and AfCFTA webinar agreed Thursday. The panelists agreed the AfCFTA was a crucial move towards removing the continent's heavy reliance on commodity and agricultural exports leading to exponential growth in the manufacturing sector, export diversification and creation of quality jobs if its full potential to be transformational for all Africans is tapped. Regional Integration Division Director at the Economic Commission for Africa, Mr. Stephen Karingi, in his remarks said a lot of empirical work had been done by ECA showing what the AfCFTA means for Africa. "One of the things we have been able to demonstrate empirically is that the AfCFTA has the potential to deepen not only the regional integration of the continent but also to allow us to do more value addition in our production processes," he said. This, added Mr. Karingi, presents an opportunity not only to create economic resilience but also create quality and more valuable jobs compared to jobs that are not based on industry. "We know what the AfCFTA means for this continent. COVID-19 has exposed that had we implemented the AfCFTA earlier, we would be in a better position than we are now," he said, adding the ECA's analytical...

Of all the legacies of colonialism, one of those which has most hampered economic growth and the alleviation of poverty is fragmentation – neighbours with different currencies, regulations enabling trade with Europe but not with other Africans, and a neglect of intra-African transport and infrastructure links to facilitate this trade. In good times, with Europe accounting for around 30% of African trade, there has been little appetite to upset the status quo. In times of economic unease, African nations, like many around the world, have tended to withdraw into themselves rather than pursue broader trading options. Repeating this pattern for a generation, African nations have historically ceded economic power to external actors, remaining price-takers and struggling to develop their own solutions at times of crisis. Change is in the air A confluence of factors is lining up to shift Africa from the old way of doing things and drive the continent towards greater prosperity and resilience. The rise of China as an economic force and major partner (19% of Africa’s trade) has given African leaders experience in opening new trade routes and the benefits this brings. At the same time, regional trading blocs like SADC, EAC, COMESA or ECOWAS have grown in strength as countries became more adept at spotting gaps in their neighbors’ markets and adjusting areas of specialization to meet demand. Building on a decade long trajectory towards greater continental integration and more diverse trading relations, the ratification of the African Continental Free Trade Area (‘AfCFTA’) now has the capacity to...

The African Import-Export Bank (Afreximbank) and International Trade Centre (ITC) team up to help businesses make the most of the African Continental Free Trade Area (Cairo/Geneva) − Afreximbank is teaming up with ITC to train small business owners and young entrepreneurs in Africa to trade with other African countries as part of the new African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). The training programme, How to Export within the AfCFTA, is being launched as the new free-trade area comes on stream and amid the economic strain of climate change and the coronavirus pandemic. The training will give business owners the knowledge and skills they need to engage effectively in cross-border trade under terms of the emerging free-trade area for Africa. Intra-African trade is structurally low at 15% (compared to Europe at nearly 70%, for example), and the AfCFTA will open a market of 1.2 billion people. 'Against the backdrop of the current COVID-19 health and economic crisis, African micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) need support to take full advantage of the continental market,' ITC acting Executive Director Dorothy Tembo said. 'Through this partnership, African businesses will have the opportunity to learn, plan and succeed in growing their business by taking full advantage of the AfCFTA.' Kanayo Awani, Managing Director of Afreximbank's Intra-African Trade Initiative, said that the initiative was necessary because promoting intra-African trade through increased exports of goods and services by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) was the cornerstone of the AFCFTA. It signals an optimal strategy to aid businesses...

Uganda’s coffee exports have continued to surge despite the coronavirus pandemic with April figures showing growth compared with a year ago. Uganda Coffee Development Authority (UCDA) said in a report released in April that Uganda coffee exports were 359,973 60 kilogramme bags worth $36.93 million compared with the 305,643 bags exported in April 2019 valued at $30,048,530 million. This was an increase of 18 per cent and 23 per cent in quantity and value respectively, compared with the same period last year. For the coffee authority, the increase in exports has been attributed to higher production on account of fruition of the newly planted coffee and not necessarily the harvest season. “Coffee exports for the first 10 months of the financial year 2019/20 amounted to 4.24 million worth $ 413.53 million compared with 3.48 million bags worth $350.26 million the previous year. This represents 21.89 per cent and 18.06 per cent increase in both quantity and value respectively. Cumulatively in 12 months, (May 2019-April 2020), a total of 4.93 million bags worth $478.47 million were exported,” said UCDA in a statement. LOCKDOWN TROUBLES The coffee authority says that apart from an increase in harvested coffee, exporters also “drew down on their stocks due to the lockdown caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.” Joseph Nkandu the executive director of the National Union of Coffee Agribusiness and Farm Enterprises said the Covid-19 surge in March forced many coffee buying companies to stock up because the coffee destination countries had closed. He cited major...

The Economic Commission for Africa has reported that between 300,000 and 3.3 million people on the continent could lose their lives to COVID-19. It has the opportunity to implement systems to support its nations through coronavirus, and into the future. These include free trade, regional value chains and infrastructure investment. The African Continental Free Trade Area was launched two years ago at an African Union (AU) summit in Kigali. It was scheduled to be implemented from 1 July 2020. But this has been pushed out until 2021 because of the impact of COVID-19 and the need for leaders to focus on saving lives. Studies by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa and others state that the free trade area has the potential to increase growth, raise welfare and stimulate industrial development on the continent. But there are concerns. Some countries, particularly smaller and more vulnerable states, could be hurt. For example, they could suffer revenue losses and other negative effects from premature liberalisation. The impact of COVID-19 will only worsen these structural weaknesses. The Economic Commission for Africa has reported that between 300,000 and 3.3 million people could lose their lives if appropriate measures are not taken. There are several reasons for this level of high risk. These include the fact that 56% of urban dwellings are in overcrowded slums, 71% of Africa’s workforce is informally employed and cannot work from home and 40% of children on the continent are undernourished. Free Trade has the potential to increase growth and...

  | FAIZEL ISMAIL | The African Continental Free Trade Area was launched two years ago at an African Union (AU) summit in Kigali. It was scheduled to be implemented from July 1, 2020. But this has been pushed out until 2021 because of the impact of COVID-19 and the need for leaders to focus on saving lives. Studies by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa and others state that the free trade area has the potential to increase growth, raise welfare and stimulate industrial development on the continent. But there are concerns. Some countries, particularly smaller and more vulnerable states, could be hurt. For example, they could suffer revenue losses and other negative effects from premature liberalisation. The impact of COVID-19 will only worsen these structural weaknesses. The Economic Commission for Africa has reported that between 300,000 and 3.3 million people could lose their lives if appropriate measures are not taken. There are several reasons for this level of high risk. These include the fact that 56% of urban dwellings are in overcrowded slums, 71% of Africa’s workforce is informally employed and cannot work from home and 40% of children on the continent are undernourished. Africa is also more vulnerable to the impact of COVID-19 because it is highly dependent on imports for its medicinal and pharmaceutical products and on commodity exports. The latter include oil, which has suffered a severe collapse in price. Other contributing factors are high public debt due to higher...

The COVID-19 pandemic is expected to hit African economies extremely hard. According to the World Bank biannual Africa’s Pulse report, as a result of the pandemic, economic growth in sub-Saharan Africa will decline from 2.4% in 2019 to between -2.1% and -5.1% in 2020, depending on the success of measures taken to mitigate the pandemic’s effects. This means that the region will experience its first recession in 25 years. The decline will be primarily due to large contractions in South Africa, Nigeria, and Angola driven by their reliance on exports of commodities whose prices have crashed as well as other structural issues. This will inevitably affect Africa’s participation in trade and value chains as well as reduce foreign financing flows. Given the limited regional market, trade with the rest of the world is vital for Africa. Before the pandemic, Africa’s trade with the rest of the world has been showing good momentum. According to UNCTAD’s Economic Development In Africa 2019 report, in the period of 2015-2017, total trade from Africa to the rest of the world averaged $760 billion in current prices, and the share of exports from Africa to the rest of the world ranged from 80% to 90% in 2000 –2017 in Africa’s total trade. The only other region with a higher export dependence on the rest of the world is Oceania. However, intra-African trade, defined as the average of intra-African exports and imports, was around 2% during the period 2015–2017, and the intra-African exports were 16.6% of...

Uganda's trade within the East African region has increased to 21 per cent from 14.6 in the last 2 years, a report on East Africa interstate trade has revealed. Statistics shared by the East Africa Community (EAC) Affairs ministry indicates that Uganda’s exports within the region fetched Shs 1.5 trillion in 2018/19 translating into a 21.2 per cent rise compared to 14.6 per cent in 2017. State Minister for EAC Affairs, Julius Wandera Maganda, says Uganda’s growth in the East Africa region trade was majorly dominated by agricultural products such as coffee, maize, rice and cotton followed by manufactured goods. “Manufactured goods such as cement, petroleum, sugar, confectionery, fats and oils, pharmaceuticals, steel and steel products, beer and sugar were also traded across the region,” said Maganda. He revealed the figures during the ongoing NRM manifesto week at Office of the Prime Minister on Thursday where he also shared his ministry’s achievements, challenges and pending plans. Even though Uganda took lead in trade within the region, even other countries such as Kenya, Tanzania and Rwanda registered more than 13 per cent growth, while Burundi and South Sudan declined by 7.1 per cent and 18.5 respectively. Maganda further elaborated that elimination of non-tariff barriers and increased intra-EAC trade in intermediate products like cold-rolled iron and clinker boosted the regions overall growth to $5.98 billion up from $5.47 billion in two years. “The growth in intra-regional trade was attributed to favourable weather conditions over the year which increased production of agricultural commodities...