Growth in Burundi is low, due to the low productivity of the subsistence agriculture on which the majority of the population depends, reveals the analysis presented on 13 July in Bujumbura by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA). This relative resilience of the Burundian economy is due to the fact that the Burundian economy relies mainly on the subsistence agriculture, reveals to UNECA analysis.On the occasion of the publication of the Burundi profile, the UNECA, which conducted an analysis on economic and social performance in Burundi with a focus on recent developments after the socio-economic crisis of 2015, reported that the country’s growth rate was -3.9% in 2015, but is expected to reach 2% by 2017. Andrew Mold, Acting Director of the UNECA Sub-regional Office for East Africa, shows that Burundi’s major challenge is the lack of structural transformation. Per capita agricultural production has decreased by 28% since 1982 as the population increased, UNECA report shows. “Yields in Burundi are 20 to 40 percent lower than in neighboring countries. Erosion, land pressure, the impact of climate change, land conflicts and lack of modern inputs are the main obstacles to agricultural modernization, “says Mold. For him, agricultural modernization is necessary for the reduction of poverty and acceleration of structural transformation. The UNECA country profiles (CPs) were launched in April 2017, in Dakar-Senegal in the Conference of African Ministers of Finance, Economic and Development Planning. CPs are key data and forecasting tools designed to provide African decision-makers with an independent...

The formal launch of the once touted the mega economic bloc for Africa, the Tripartite Free Trade Area (FTA), faces further delay because only one country has so far ratified its creation out of 19 member states. A minimum of 14 ratifications are required for the agreement to come into force, combining three regional economic communities, the East African Community (EAC), Southern Africa Development Community (Sadc) and Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (Comesa). This emerged last week when Madagascar, a Comesa member, appended its signature to the Tripartite Agreement before senior officials of the EAC, Sadc and Comesa. "Egypt is the only country to have ratified the Agreement. A total of 14 ratifications are needed for the agreement's entry into force," officials at the event in Antananarivo were told. Under the Agreement, the three economic blocs were to merge into a single free trade area, the largest in Africa, with a combined Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of $ 1.3 trillion, making it also one of the largest FTAs in the world. Although the signing of the Agreement by Madagascar, only a few days after South Africa did so, the EAC secretary general, Liberat Mfumukeko, the current chairperson of the Tripartite Task Force, admitted that negotiations were going at a snail's pace and that little has been achieved. "There had been limited progress in Phase Two negotiations and the agreement on the movement of business persons," he said in Kampala on July 7th, hardly a week before the Antananarivo...

The Facilitation Office announced another round for July. While the dialogue is deadlocked, some already call for more meetings. Remember, on May 20th, the report of the facilitator Mkapa almost tolled the knell for the dialogue. In particular, he recalled his request for an intervention by the EAC, which remained a dead letter. On the contrary, Museveni, president of the EAC and at the same time mediator in the crisis asked the European Union to lift its sanctions against Burundi. But, in spite of everything, the Tanzanian President did not throw in the sponge. Mkapa decided to roll up his sleeves. “We are preparing to resume dialogue for this month of July. Everything is ready, except for a few things, “said Facilitator’s personal assistant Macocha Tembele. Mr Mkapa has to get a move on. He had set himself by the end June to reach an agreement. We are already mid-July. On this failure, the facilitation seems to be reluctant to get involved in an argument with the protagonists: “They refused to sit together for one reason or another, raised either by the government or the opposition”. Bujumbura didn’t remain idle Bujumbura did not knock off during this time. The National Security Council, led by President Nkurunziza himself, met from 20 to 21 June 2017. The implementation of the conclusions of the National Commission for Inter-Burundian Dialogue report leading to the amendment to the Constitution and the bringing back of the external dialogue to Burundi were on the menu of the...

Among optimists, the proposal by East African Community (EAC) member states to ban the importation of used clothes by 2019 is great because it could spark the growth of a local textile industry in the bloc. But pessimists say the move will complicate the region’s trade arrangements with leading partners including the U.S. which is also a large exporter of used clothes to the region. It could also increase the cost of clothes in countries where the majority of the population is poor and lead to the import of new cheap clothes to out-compete the very industries the regional governments seek to protect. Faced with these options, some business analysts are proposing a middle-ground that reflects the status quo. They say the region is better off allowing entry of used clothes as it also develops its own textile industry. “As a region, there’s need to allow entry of any products provided there  are no illegalities in the sale of those items on our markets while at the same time boosting  their  production locally,”  said Charles Ocici, the executive director at Enterprise Uganda, a USAID-sponsored agency for equipping skills to small and medium firms. He suggests a co-existence of used and new clothes in the regional markets and the use of taxes to ensure fair competition between them. That way, Ocici says, the burden of the ban will not only be felt by the poor but by all clothing consumers, who will, in turn, buy the locally made clothes. He added...

Plans to harmonize East Africa mobile tariffs to create a single mobile network face hurdles as some nations fear that their telecoms could suffer losses, officials said on Monday. Communication Authority of Kenya Director General Francis Wangusi told Xinhua in Nairobi that once a country is not sure of the consequences of the one area network, it needs to be conscious not to find itself making a mistake. Wangusi said that one of the things hindering the adoption of the single network is the fear of illegal termination of international traffic purporting to be local calls. "We are already experiencing cases where calls from outside East African Community (EAC) are being illegally terminated locally and then relayed as a local calls and this is denying revenues to local telecoms," he added. The one area network was introduced in 2014, but so far only Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and South Sudan have joined the single network. Other EAC member states such as Burundi and Tanzania are not yet part of the network that seeks to ensure that all intra-EAC calls are treated as local calls. The regulator is seeking to purchase a device management system to monitor its network so as to prevent the illegal termination of internationals and raise the credibility of the single network. Wangusi said that EAC partner states are set to have a meeting towards the end of month in order to discuss ways to overcome the challenges. Source: Xinhua Net

The East African Community is in the process of signing an economic partnership agreement with the European Union. So far, only Kenya and Rwanda have signed the agreement. Burundi is reluctant to sign the agreement in the wake of economic sanctions imposed on it by the EU. Meanwhile, Tanzania has commissioned a study on the effects of signing the agreement on the region. Uganda has stated that it will sign the agreement only if all the EAC member states reach a consensus, which seems difficult at this stage. However, of interest are the possible effects of such an agreement on the region as highlighted in the study commissioned by Tanzania. The research seems to conclude that it is not advisable for the EAC to sign the agreement due to a number of negative effects including the danger posed to local industries and reduced revenue from tax. The effect of the agreement, according to the study, is that it will open up the market to cheaper imports from the EU therefore posing danger to local industries. Furthermore, due to the reduction of taxes on such imports, revenue will be less. These are some of the reasons highlighted against the agreement. However, Kenya and Rwanda have signed the agreement as it gives them access to more markets. While I have not looked into the economic impact of such agreements, I believe that EAC member states can resort to using domestic laws to protect the local industry from whatever harmful effects that may...

As Kenya's general election beckons the race has effectively narrowed down to two horses. Either, opposition leader Raila Odinga , or incumbent Uhuru Kenyatta will be Kenya's president after August 8. The bid for State House has attracted eight presidential contenders in total. But in recent weeks the focus has shifted to Odinga's National Super Alliance and Kenyatta's Jubilee Party, both of which have recently unveiled their manifestos. While the manifestos look good on paper, depending on one's political leaning, they are unlikely to have a significant impact on how Kenyans will cast their votes. The majority of the electorate have already decided on their preferred candidate. Most will vote on the basis of their tribal affiliations. The latest polling by Infotrak shows that only 8% of Kenyans are undecided on which presidential aspirant to vote for. Despite the fact that party manifestos will not shift voting patterns, they do provide a policy snapshot of what the parties would prioritise were they to form the next government. The fact that neither the Jubilee Party nor the National Super Alliance manifesto takes much account of relations between Kenya and its peers in the East African Community, is noteworthy. And disturbing. A study of the two manifestos shows that neither has a coherent plan for regional integration. This should concern Kenyans, as well as the country's neighbours. Relations between Kenya and its neighbours aren't as they could be. A few months ago cabinet secretary for foreign affairs Amina Mohamed accused Kenya's neighbours of not backing her candidature for the chairmanship of the African Union commission. Uganda openly disputed...

The cost of transporting goods has dropped by over 30% for Uganda destined goods A delegation from Uganda to the World Trade Organisation in partnership with Trade Mark East Africa (TMA) has impressed Swiss investors with how efficient Uganda’s borders during a  a side event on Trade Facilitation on the sidelines of the Sixth Global Review of Aid For Trade in Gevena. The objective of this session was to show the extent to which Uganda with the support of TMA had undertaken deliberate and strategic moves to ease the cost of doing business. Amelia Anne Kyambadde, Minister of Trade, Industry and Cooperatives together with Frank Matsaert, Chief Executive Officer of TMA were on the panel to show case the One Stop Boarder Post (OSBP) in Busia. A live link connection was done to feed directly into the panel discussion to an audience of over 500 trade facilitation enthusiasts. A video highlighting the OSBP processes at Busia was showcased. The three-minute video highlighted: the One Stop Border Post; the Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) Scheme; and the Regional Electronic Cargo Tracking System. During the discussion, the Kyambadde fielded several questions moderated by Matsaert on why the OSBP; the challenges that obtained before; and the benefits of the OSBP in terms of cost reductions with regard to movement of cargo and clearance of goods. Matsaert observed that TMA’s efforts to facilitate trade in East Africa had focused on removing bottlenecks and improving efficiency along the main transport arteries. He noted that, after the...

Civil society organizations have backed the East African Community (EAC) heads of states to ban the importation of secondhand clothes in order to build the capacity of cotton and textile industries within the region. “It is important that the decision by the heads of states to phase out secondhand clothes be supported in order to enable the EAC in general and Uganda in particular grow and enhance her local production capacity,” said Faith Lumonya. She is the programme officer of Southern and Eastern Africa Trade Information and Negotiations Institute (SEATINI). With specific reference to Uganda, the group argued that Uganda National Textile policy value chain analysis indicates that with added capacity at spinning, weaving and finishing stages, more revenue can be generated and more jobs could be created internally beyond the 2.5 million across the value chain. “As such, the EAC can implement measures to phase out secondhand clothes so as to boost her domestic industries,” the civil society groups told the media in Kampala. On February 20, 2015, the EAC heads of states directed the council of ministers to study modalities for the promotion of textile and leather industries in the region and stopping the importation of used clothes, shoes and other leather products from outside the region. This decision arose out of the need for the EAC to advance a market-driven integration by boosting manufacturing and industrialization; promoting forward and backward linkages and achieve structural transformation through high value addition and product diversification as stipulated in the EAC...

Travel within Africa is not easy, it is expensive and often frustrating. The regional blocs have been working on travel agreements, particularly air travel to facilitate easy travel, but the high cost of tickets and airport taxes are making travel still expensive and out of reach of many citizens. But the East African Community (EAC) is taking a giant step to make travel within the region cheaper by classifying air travel from one country to the other domestic. A report by the East African says by the end of 2017, flights between countries in the region will be classified as domestic. The benefits will accrue to travellers because, according to the report, it will lower the price of air tickets and increase the number of air passengers. “The change will see the price of air tickets drop by up to 12 per cent across the region, with domestic flyers charged a service fee of $5, compared with the $50 paid by international passengers,” it said. While it is easier and cheaper to travel from Kenya to Rwanda by air, it is practically impossible to travel from Ghana to Benin in West Africa. The EAC region is ahead of all the other blocs in Africa towards achieving integration. A 2016 Africa Regional Integration Index – which measure progress on regional integration, ranked the EAC the number in Africa. On the Index, the EAC came first with a score of 0.540, followed by the Southern African Development Community (SADC) which scored 0.531, and ECOWAS...