Trade PS Chris Kiptoo during a past media briefing in Nairobi on September 24 last year /ENOS TECHE Kenya might propose a change of rules in negotiating for the long-standing free trade deal between the East African Community and the European Union as a last option. This is if Tanzania opts out of the pact again in January during the EAC heads of state summit in Nairobi. Trade PS Chris Kiptoo has, however, downplayed growing anxiety that the south-neighbouring nation may not sign the Economic Partnership Agreement that guarantees quota and duty-free market access to the EU. Reports have indicated that Tanzanian Parliament voted against trade deal a fortnight ago, while a Tanzanian lawyer has filed a case before the East African Court of Justice in a bid to block the EPA. The EU trade arrangement for African, Caribbean and Pacific countries has been on the table since 2007. The five East African Community countries decided to negotiate the deal as a bloc in spirit of the Common Market protocol which came into force in July 2010. “The journey will continue because EPA as designed is to be signed by all for it to be implemented,” Trade PS Chris Kiptoo told the Star. “If Tanzanians have changed their minds then it will be an issue for further discussions. In January, we will have a decision taken, and if it will be a delay, if it is going to be variable geometry, we may … change the rule instead of all...

By Eronie Kamukama and Jonathan Adengo Kampala — The East African Community (EAC) is hatching a plan to harmonise laws that will regulate cross border insolvency. Insolvency occurs when an organisation or individual is unable to pay debts on time. An insolvent company can either wind up or be restructured. Speaking to journalists an the launch of the insolvency week in Kampala, Mr Bemanya Twebaze, the registrar general Uganda Registration Services Bureau (URSB),said resolving insolvency is one of the areas that the World Bank bases in preparing its easing of business report. The World Bank Doing Business Report 2017 which is its 14 edition and themed 'Equal Opportunity for All' released in Washington DC on October 25, shows that Uganda moved from 122 in 2015 to 115 in 2016 out of 190 economies. Mr Twebaze, said the move is timely as countries shift towards borderless trade. "Trade across borders is a daily occurrence so what happens in a situation where a company which is trading across the region goes into liquidation," he said at the Regional Official Receivers' Forum on Wednesday. He said a common insolvency law is very vital for countries in the bloc as they attract more investments.  "Investment decisions will be taken when investors are clear about the legal regime especially on insolvency," he said. According to Mr Mustapher Ntale, the manager liquidation URSB, the current practice makes it difficult for a thriving company in one country to transfer its assets and save an insolvent company in...

Only a few hundred kilometres separate Lagos, Nigeria, from Accra in Ghana. For the thousands of traders who ply this route, the journey through Togo and Benin can take a full day, punctuated by arduous border checks, harassment and solicitations from officials for kickbacks. "Customs officials and police at roadblocks will make you unload and unpack every little package in order to delay you for hours," says Ms. Lucia Quachey, secretary-general of the African Federation of Women Entrepreneurs, an organization of more than 4 million women across the continent, producing and trading everything from textiles to pharmaceuticals and vehicle parts. "Everyone knows the intention is to force travellers to pay." Some of this activity is illegal, she says -- deliberate efforts by officials to violate the principle of free movement of people and goods within the 15-member Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). It is also due to the slow implementation of regional integration agreements aimed at eliminating tariff and non-tariff barriers in the region. Despite pronouncements of support by politicians for regional economic ties, the reality on the ground for traders such as Ms. Quachey remains difficult. African countries are grappling to undo a legacy dominated by trade with their former colonial rulers rather than with each other. Senegal's biggest trading partner is France, while Gambia trades extensively with the UK. Although Senegal surrounds Gambia, trade between the two neighbours is minimal. The continent's railways and roads often lead towards the ports rather than link countries across regions....

  IN SUMMARY The EAC Polythene Materials Control Bill, 2016 moved by Rwanda’s Patricia Hajabakiga tops the agenda of EALA’s two-week special session which begins in Nairobi on Monday. The light non-biodegradable plastic bags have been cited as top environmental nuisance across East Africa. Kenya had petitioned the EAC Parliament to introduce a levy instead of imposing a blanket ban on polythene bags as Rwanda had proposed. The East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) members are headed for a major showdown as Rwanda pushes on with its bid for a total ban on use of polythene bags in the region. The EAC Polythene Materials Control Bill, 2016 moved by Rwanda’s Patricia Hajabakiga tops the agenda of EALA’s two-week special session which begins in Nairobi on Monday. Use of polythene bags is illegal in Rwanda. “The Bill, 2016 aims at providing a legal framework for the preservation of a clean and healthy environment through the prohibition of manufacturing, sale, importation and use of polythene materials,” EALA said in a statement last week. The light non-biodegradable plastic bags – primarily used for packaging at retail stores– have been cited as top environmental nuisance across East Africa. The civil society campaigners across the region have been united in their call for total ban on use of polythene bags which are also seen as posing health risks to citizens. This is the second time that Ms Hajabakiga will be trying lobby the regional parliamentarians to adopt the law banning use of plastic within the trading...

President Uhuru Kenyatta with his Tanzanian counterpart John Magufuli at State House, Nairobi, when he toured the country earlier this month. The Tanzanian President gave the topic of Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) a wide berth during his two-day visit. [PHOTO:BONIFACE OKENDO/STANDARD]In July this year, a deal-signing ceremony between the East African Community (EAC) and the European Union was put off indefinitely. This was after Tanzania and Uganda declined to sign the European Partnership Agreement (EPA). One of the reasons the two countries cited in their stand was Brexit - Britain’s landmark referendum vote on June 24 to leave the European Union - casting a cloud of uncertainty over the future of the preferential trade deal. At the time, Tanzania and Uganda argued that after Brexit, it was necessary to wait and see if Britain, operating outside the EU, was a more strategic partner to East Africa or not. But the other more pertinent reason why Tanzania in particular declined to sign on and which it once again raised last week, was that scholars from the University of Dar es Salaam reportedly cautioned that signing and ratifying the deal would jeopardise Tanzania’s industrial sector. President John Magufuli’s main concern for pushing the ratification of the deal to January has always been the future of the country’s fledgling industrial sector. He has all along argued that ratifying the EPA as it is would flood Tanzania with cheap agricultural and manufactured imports. In addition, the country is weary of being a station for...

East African Community Secretary-General Liberat Mfumekeko (right) exchanges signed copies of the five-year EAC-USAid Regional Development Objective Grant Agreement with USAid East Africa head Karen Freeman (left) and Virginia Blaser, chargé d'affaires of the US embassy in Tanzania. PHOTO | COURTESY  In Summary Access to integrated health services in border areas like Mt Elgon in Kenya and Uganda will also be improved. EAC secretariat said about $30 million (Sh3 billion) of the amount will be used to strengthen its operations. The United States government will give the East African Community (EAC) $194 million (Sh19.4 billion) to finance trade, agriculture, health, climate change and other development projects to improve the economy of the region. This follows the signing of a regional development objectives grant agreement at the EAC headquarters in Arusha, Tanzania, on Wednesday. The five-year agreement was signed by US representative to the EAC Virginia Blaser, United States Agency for International Development (USAid) mission director for Kenya and East Africa Karen Freeman, and EAC Secretary-General Liberaìt Mfumukeko. In a statement to newsrooms, the EAC secretariat said about $30 million (Sh3 billion) of the amount will be used to strengthen its operations while the remainder will support EAC regional integration projects. “The new grant will deepen integration, improve cross-border risk management and support sectors like climate change, gender, livelihood, and population and health threats,” Mr Liberaìt said. The partners will work together on challenges that prevent integration in the five countries. HEALTH IN BORDER AREAS They are also set to increase...

Signs of protectionism in East Africa since the commencement of the bloc's Common Market regime have frustrated free movement of people and services. Integration efforts have been hampered by work permits required by some countries and delays in ratification of mutual recognition agreements for various professionals. Protectionist tendencies exhibited by some member states are mainly driven by the desire to shield certain sectors from foreign rivals. Whereas tariffs charged against foreign firms and professionals entering certain markets offer attractive revenue collection streams for countries, the overall share of tariff revenues in the East African Community has dropped to around 1.5 per cent of GDP since the Common Market was launched in July 2010, according to Mario Mansur, a tax expert based at the International Monetary Fund. "The application of such fees is driven by a traditional desire to collect more tax revenues needed to fund national programmes. But protectionism also plays a big role in countries seeking to protect local enterprises from aggressive foreign competitors," said Adam Mugume, executive director for research at the Bank of Uganda. Hurdles Whereas Tanzania recently announced reductions in work permit fees and professional service fees levied on foreign workers and businesses operating in the country, continued enforcement of these fees still poses hurdles to free movement of labour and services, contrary to provisions of the Common Market Treaty. Work permit fees have been slashed from $2,000 per year to $500 per year for every individual while professional service fees have been reduced from $3,000...

Customs experts from revenue administrations across Africa are meeting in Harare to discuss modalities of implementing the One Stop Border Post concept on the continent so as to enhance Customs clearances and trade facilitation. The meeting, which runs from 14 to 16 November, is a precursor to the 8th Ordinary Meeting of the African Union Sub-Committee of Directors General of Customs which will run from 17 to 18 November under the theme, “From Barriers to Bridges – Implementing One Stop Border Posts for Improved Trade Facilitation”. Almost all African countries are represented at this year’s event, which will see Zimbabwe assuming the Chairmanship of the African Union Sub-Committee of Directors General of Customs. Speaking while officially opening the event at a local hotel, the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (ZIMRA) Acting Commissioner General, Mr Happias Kuzvinzwa, applauded the One Stop Border Post concept as a sure way to improve on trade facilitation within the African continent. “One of the many ways to achieve the cognitive level of cooperation to improve on trade facilitation is the implementation of the One Stop Border Posts, which has the potential to improve the smooth flow of traffic at crossing points, as well as cutting down on the costs associated with the moving of goods across the borders,” said Mr Kuzvinzwa. He applauded the critical role being played by the Customs Technical Working Groups saying, this will help address issues in the Trade Facilitation Cluster of the Action Plan on Boosting Intra-African Trade. The Action Plan on...

By Rhiannon Snide and James Karuhanga The Ministry of Trade, Industry and East African Community Affairs is looking to more youth involvement in regional integration agenda, a top official said yesterday, at the launch of the latest edition of EAC Week. François Kanimba, the Minister for Trade, Industry and East African Community Affairs, said this yesterday during a news conference to launch the seventh EAC Week. The campaign will run under the theme: "Regional Integration: A Necessity for Development." "There was a general agreement at EAC-level that the focus should be on how regional integration is a key driver for economic development. This is the key message wherever we are going to go, particularly when we talk to the youth," Kanimba told journalists in Kigali. "This message will be emphasised as a mobilisation tool for the youth to maximise their potential to contribute to the regional integration process. Youth can contribute in different ways." Held annually in all EAC Partner States during the month of November, the EAC Week aims to increase awareness among citizens on the EAC integration agenda. The three-fold objective of this EAC Awareness Week is: updating Rwandans on key achievements under EAC integration, promoting awareness on key ongoing projects and programmes, and addressing the public's concerns and questions on the bloc's integration agenda. The minister added: "When you look at the skill development programmes we are implementing, particularly in Rwanda, skills are a fundamental ingredient to realise benefits of regional integration process. Skilled people can move...

  BRUSSELS, BELGIUM - Liberat Mfumukeko, the East African Community (EAC) Secretary General Ambassador was in Brussels last week to attend a High Level Committee of the European Development Fund (EDF). Created in 1957 by the Treaty of Rome and launched in 1959, the European Development Fund (EDF) is the European Union’s main instrument for providing development aid to African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries and to overseas countries and territories. The EDF funds cooperation activities in the fields of economic development, social and human development as well as regional cooperation and integration. The EDF meeting in Brussels brought together the Secretary’s General of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD), EAC , Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the Indian Ocean Commission(IOC), and EU representatives from Brussels. Amb. Mfumukeko asked the EU to consider priorities such as enhancing food security, income generation for employment to improve livelihoods. The Secretary General was accompanied at the meeting by Jessica Eriyo , the EAC Deputy Secretary General in charge of Finance and Administration who also led the EAC delegation during Technical meetings. The purpose of the high level meeting was to discuss the implementation of the EDF 11 under which EAC was allocated 85 million Euros for a period of 5 years. The resources were distributed as follows: Peace and Security (15million Euros), regional integration (45 million Euros), natural resources management (20 million  Euros), and institutional strengthening (5 million Euros). The 11th EDF was created...