Efforts to promote and grow trade in Africa under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) have received a boost following a pact for trade facilitation and financing. The deal between trade aid firm, TradeMark Africa, Tony Blair Institute and Trade Catalyst Africa seeks to fast track the implementation of the trade initiative launched in 2021, with eight countries participating in the initiative so far. The agreement will also seek to deploy its expertise in trade facilitation projects, policy advice to governments, digitisation of trade processes, industrialisation, trade infrastructure, green logistics and innovative finance to help resolve trade bottlenecks between African nations. Commenting on the partnership, TradeMark Africa CEO, David Beer welcomed the partnership noting the strategy will create the right synergies in driving economic growth. “At TMA, we are proud of the trade facilitation that we have undertaken across the East, Horn and Southern Africa over the last decade. This has made significant contributions to reducing the time and cost of trade, as well as expanding exports,” Beer said. He added that they would further build on the partnership to help realise the aspirations of AfCFTA member states, in creating a truly seamless trading environment in Africa. TBI managing director Rishon Chimboza hailed the pact saying it will help unleash Africa's trade potential that could lift about 30 million people across the continent out of extreme poverty by 2035. According to the World Bank, if AfCFTA were fully rolled out, it would create a single, continent-wide market that unites 54...

What you need to know: The two countries, however, see the opening of the border post as one of the measures to end cattle rustling, or stock theft, an age-old tradition that has been commercialised by international criminal networks in East Africa and the Horn. Kenya and Uganda have initiated talks for the opening of a one-stop border post in Lokiriama in northwest Kenya, that will seek to open up trade and fight livestock raids. Kenya's Interior Principal Secretary Raymond Omollo said the border post would enhance movement and trade between the two nations and investments in the cross-border road network and improved security and surveillance. The two countries revived their September 2019 memorandum of understanding that sought to enhance cross-border trade between the Turkana and Karamoja, by establishing immigration and customs border points at Lokiriama, Nawountos and Nakitong’o. “The two governments should mobilise resources for peace dividend projects and to facilitate peace-building initiatives in the region for sustainable peace and security,” the joint statement concluded. The border region is mainly occupied by the Turkana and Pokot ethnic communities in northwestern Kenya, and the Karamajong, an ethnic group of agro-pastoral herders living in the northeast of Uganda. Years of banditry These communities have over the years engaged in banditry, making the region unsafe.  The two countries, however, see the opening of the border post as one of the measures to end cattle rustling, or stock theft, an age-old tradition that has been commercialised by international criminal networks in East Africa...

  Trade Mark East Africa in partnership with the County Government of Busia has taken the initiative to educate women on the importance of climate change, environment, social safeguards and trade. The Chief Officer Trade, Industry, Investment and Cooperatives, Mr. Kennedy Mbaja asked women in business to invest in cereal crops that produce edible oil. “As a county, we are about to have our own industrial park and what can we do that is unique from others? Let us form groups and register with cooperatives and plant simsim, groundnuts, avocado, sunflower and soya beans which will help us get oil and its by-products,” he said. He said that Busia County has favorable climate and soil for production of groundnuts, cashew nuts, simsim, soya beans and sunflowers that are rich in production of oil. “We urge farmers to try oil palm, sesame, sunflower, groundnuts and soya beans on a large scale to supplement the sugarcane they have been growing for many years now,” noted Mbaja. Project Manager PROCESS Limited Mr. Patrick Ino said the overall objective of the workshop is to help women in trade to increase income and their capacity to participate in trade and also improve their resilience towards climate change. “Today we want to empower women to overcome the challenges that come with climate change, adaptation and mitigation of environmental issues in line with World Bank environment and social safeguard standards,” he revealed. Women trading in various commodities including fish, fruits, and general hotel foodstuff have been introduced...

In Summary President Ruto said Nairobi is a strong participant in the Tripartite Trade Agreement encompassing EAC, Comesa and SADC. This, he said, will offer the 28-countries bloc the advantage of 750 million people and an economy of $1.8 trillion. The EAC-Comesa-SADC tripartite agreement will be in place by the end of April 2023, President William Ruto has said. This means 28 African countries will trade as a bloc with the European Union. Pitching Kenya as the preferred investment hub for EU investors on Tuesday, President Ruto said Nairobi is a strong participant in the Tripartite Trade Agreement encompassing EAC, Comesa and SADC. “The tripartite agreement was signed in 2015 and unfortunately for the seven years or so, we have not concluded it to the satisfaction of the EU requirements,” the President said in Nairobi during the EU-Kenya Business Forum. To address this challenge, Ruto said he sent Trade CS Moses Kuria as his special envoy to 11 capitals to meet with the respective presidents. “He [Moses Kuria] has been to Egypt, Angola, Comoros [new AU chair], Uganda, Tanzania, Lesotho South Africa …, and now I can promise with confidence, by the end of April, we will have the tripartite agreement in place,” Ruto said. This, he said, will offer the 28-countries bloc the advantage of 750 million people and an economy of $1.8 trillion. “This is a great opportunity that as the EU looks at Kenya, you are also looking at the tripartite agreement and a huge population and economy...

Complex and stringent rules of origin can prevent businesses from taking advantage of trade preferences, according to a new study by UNCTAD and the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) secretariat. Rules of origin are the “passport” for goods, determining whether they can be exempted from taxes or taxed less under a preferential trade arrangement or free trade area (FTA). They can be complex to comply with – especially for products made using materials from different countries through global value chains – and can make it difficult for products to qualify for trade preferences. This complexity can hinder African businesses from benefiting from preferential trade agreements that the continent’s governments have increasingly signed to increase intra-African trade or exports to partners like the European Union (EU). Utilization rates Utilization rates measure the extent to which firms are using FTAs. The study uses rates reported by COMESA countries to examine how effectively firms in those nations are using trade preferences offered by FTAs. “Making utilization rates publicly available will help governments monitor the effectiveness of trade agreements,” says Paul Akiwumi, director of UNCTAD’s division for Africa and least developed countries. “And understanding which trade agreements are working better for African firms will help the continent’s governments improve the outcome of trade negotiations and ensure better trade deals,” he adds. Underutilized potential of free trade agreements The study compares the utilization rates of COMESA members under FTAs with other African countries and preferential agreements with Canada, the EU, Japan and the United...

East African Business Council (EABC) has raised new concerns that variations in tax policies are distorting prices and frustrating intra-EAC trade and investment. As a result, the EAC member states are being urged to eliminate discriminatory taxes and accelerate the harmonization of domestic taxes within the bloc if they are to attract improved cross-border and foreign direct investments. Unharmonized taxes, it emerged, was largely contributing to the bend of the intra-EAC trade and cross-border investment and frustrating the free movement of goods, services, service suppliers, and workers. Speaking during the Validation Webinar for the Study on Discriminative Taxes and Harmonization of Excise Duties in the East African Community (EAC) – the Council’s Chief John Bosco Kalisa, called on the EAC Partner States to adhere to Article 15:2 of Customs Union Protocol that states for the trade within the bloc to flourish. “No Partner State shall impose, directly or indirectly, on the products of other Partner States any internal taxation of any kind in excess of that imposed, directly or indirectly, on similar domestic products,” states the article’s excerpt. The continued intra-EAC trade decline reflects a gradual loss of competitiveness among the region’s manufacturers compared with Asian exporters, as well as increasing protectionism fueled by political tensions among some member countries that have engulfed the region over the past couple of years – limiting attractiveness. Other upshots include an unlevelled playing field for business and difficulties in marketing the EAC bloc as a single investment destination, according to Kalisa. The harmonization...

Summary The FSNWG data shows Rwanda breweries imported 3,991 tonnes of sorghum from Uganda. Small scale cross-border traders complain they have not fully benefited from the reopening of the border. Previously most of the informal trade at the Gatuna-Katuna border was in foodstuff such as maize flour. Rwanda’s appetite for imports from Ugandan grew to a record $60.55 million in the fourth quarter of 2022 from $15.64 million in the first nine months to September as Kigali turned to her regional neighbours for food supplies and raw materials. Latest Bank of Uganda trading data shows exports, which had stagnated in single-digit millions of dollars between January and September 2022, grew to an average of $20 million monthly between October-December. Ugandan economist Fred Muhumuza attributed the growth to lower harvests in Rwanda that necessitated food imports. “The importer ... has to import a lot of food to restock. In future, we might see export levels reduce,” he told local media in Uganda. Highlights published in the East African Cross Border Trade Bulletin by the Food Security and Nutrition Working Group (FSNWG) show that Rwandan authorities were under pressure to provide adequate food and also ensure sufficient supply for raw material, especially for breweries. The FSNWG data shows Rwanda breweries imported 3,991 tonnes of sorghum from Uganda, 2,065 tonnes of maize and 2,866 tonnes of rice from Tanzania. However, small scale cross-border traders – who used to dominate the informal trade business – complain they have not fully benefited from the reopening...

Luanda- The Cabinet Council analysed Thursday the draft project resolution that approves Angola’s ratification of the Agreement that creates the Tripartite Free Trade Zone COMESA-EAC-SADC. The document analysed in the first Extraordinary Session led by President João Lourenço will be submitted to the National Assembly. The agreement aims to establish a legal framework for trade in goods and services between member states of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), the East African Community (EAC) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC), in accordance with the laws and regulations in force in each country. It also aims to promote the economic and social development of the region, creation of a large common market with free circulation of goods and services and the promotion of intra-regional trade. Among the objectives of the agreement are also the strengthening of regional and continental integration processes and the building of a strong Tripartite Free Trade Area for the benefit of the peoples of the region. The agreement also provides for the progressive elimination of tariffs and non-tariff barriers to trade in goods, the liberalisation of trade in services, cooperation in customs matters and the implementation of trade facilitation measures. The COMESA-EAC-SADC tripartite mechanism was established during the first Heads of State and Government Summit held in Kampala, Uganda October 22, 2008. Read original article

To align with its West Africa expansion, TradeMark East Africa rebranded last month to TradeMark Africa as its sub-regional office will be headquartered in Ghana’s Accra. This marks an important step in trade facilitation within the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) region, with CEO David Beer expecting that bureaucratic delays at the various borders will soon be cut down by at least 70%. Read original article

East African Community leaders and the business community are excited at the move by Kenyan President William Ruto to ease trade restriction between Kenya and Uganda, saying it gives new hope for deeper integration. Since his inauguration in September last year, Ruto has reversed several of his predecessor’s policies including lifting restrictions on imports from Uganda mainly dairy, poultry and sugar products. Though President Kenyatta largely maintained silence as the products were being confiscated, he was seen as responding to concerns by farmers’ and political leaders there, that Uganda’s low-priced products were killing the Kenyan agricultural sector. President Ruto has severally said no product from Uganda should be barred because EAC was all about free trade. Uganda has also recently attempted to stop importation of rice from Tanzania to protect local producers, while previously Tanzania had rejected sugar and maize from Uganda saying the country could produce enough for its own market. John Bosco Kalisa, the Chief Executive East African Business Community says the resolution of these disputes should lead to the removal of more non-tariff barriers to trade. First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for EAC Affairs, Rebecca Kadaga said a lot still had to be done, and condemned the practice of closing borders as hurting the business community and the innocent citizens. Speaking on Friday before a retreat of the EABC Board on the regional integration agenda in Kampala, Kadaga regretted that the traders at the Uganda-Rwanda border had got hope after Kigali announced the reopening of the...