Construction of the second phase of the second container terminal at the Mombasa port is set to begin in January. This is after Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) secured a Sh35 billion loan from the Japanese government. The KPA Managing Director, Catherine Mturi-Wairi, said yesterday the tendering process for the project would begin soon. “We already have the Sh35 billion financing from the Japanese government. We are now in the tendering process but construction must commence by January 2018,” said Ms Mturi-Wairi in an interview. The second phase of the container will provide an additional capacity of 450,000 Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units (TEUs). Handling capacity The first phase was completed in September last year and has a handling capacity of 550,000 TEUs. Meanwhile, Transport Cabinet Secretary James Macharia has announced that the Government is looking for more funds to build a modern and bigger oil terminal to replace the Kipevu Oil Terminal in Mombasa. “We are planning a situation where the facility will have pipes running on the seabed to link with KPC (Kenya Pipeline Company) storage tanks,” said Mr Macharia in an interview. "The new oil terminal will incorporate an LPG pipeline and have the capacity to handle four vessels at a time. He also confirmed that the ongoing construction of an alternative transport route from Mombasa to Burundi through Holili, Singida-Kobero border and finally Bujumbura was on its last stretch. Final phase “The project is in its final phase,” Macharia said. "The route will cover about 1,545km, which reduces the...

A study released by the Kenya Association of Manufacturers last month stated that Africa continues to be Kenya’s leading export destination accounting for 40.6 per cent of our exports, with the EAC community taking up 21.1 per cent of total exports in 2016. This means that our exports to the EAC accounted for slightly more than half of the total exports in Africa. However, our total export earnings last year decreased by 4.0 per cent and this could be explained by a decrease to exports in Uganda and Rwanda by 9.3 and 2.5 per cent respectively. In the past five years, we have witnessed the growth of our EAC neighbours through their efforts to industrialize and grow their economies. Kenya which has always been a trailblazer in this regard in the region, has now, at best stagnated and at worst, as I have mentioned above, lost its footing in some areas. This is a sign that we need to act fast if we want to remain a beacon and a notable investment hub in Africa. There is an urgent need to start channelling our focus towards diversifying and growing our exports in order to secure our markets. AFDB have cited that intra African trade has decreased from 18pc in 2000 to 15pc in 2015. Whilst in markets like the EU, most member states have two or three of their regional partners who account for over 50pc of their intra EU exports. With these statistics, it apparent that EAC countries have...

The Government plans to put more effort in automation of services at the port of Mombasa as the amount of cargo increases. Data from the Kenya Ports of Authority (KPA) shows that in the first six months of 2017, the facility handled 17.5 million tonnes, up from 15.7 million tonnes in the same period last year. Transport and Infrastructure Cabinet Secretary James Macharia said with the port likely to handle more cargo, especially from neighbouring countries, automation of services is crucial. “We are continuing to implement the Mombasa Port Community Charter devised in 2014. Most important is the automation of services under the Kenya National Single Window System as we anticipate more cargo coming especially directed to our neighbours,” he said. KPA Managing Director Catherine Mturi-Wairi said export traffic at the port during the first half of the year increased slightly by 36,094 tonnes to 2,182,232 tonnes. Import traffic had a major increase, growing by 12.1 per cent to record 14,803,838 tonnes from 13,209,720 tonnes registered last year. The increase was driven by bulk commodities such as wheat, clinker, palm oil and refined petroleum products. “Handling such quantities needs an efficient and automated cargo handling system. We already have one in place but we will be working with partners like Trade Mark East Africa to improve on it,” said Ms Mturi-Wairi. The automation comes even as the Kenya Shippers Council CEO Gilbert Langat said cargo handling at the port is still slow due to poor systems, calling on KPA to improve...

Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) has announced plans to develop Shimoni Port on Kwale’s Indian Ocean coast and Kisumu Port on the shores of Lake Victoria. The ports will then be placed under the management of the State Corporation. Shimoni Port receives goods between Kenya, Zanzibar and Pemba and is managed by various Government departments, including Kenya Wildlife Services and Immigration Department. The port in Kisumu is managed by Kenya Railways. Speaking during a KPA stakeholders meeting in Nairobi, KPA Chairman Marsden Madoka said surveys on the two facilities had been carried out and consultants had already compiled reports to advice on the way forward. Meanwhile, KPA Managing Director Catherine Mturi-Wairi has disclosed that last year KPA handled 27.26 million tonnes of cargo up from 26.73 million in 2015, a growth of 2.4 per cent. She said container traffic alone recorded an increase of 15,253 TEUs (Twenty Feet Equivalent) from 1.07 million TEUs handled in 2015 to 1.091 million TEUs in 2016. "Performance in the first seven months of this year has also been promising as we have continued to witness an overall positive growth compared to last year’s corresponding period," she said. The port handled 17.52 million tonnes up from 15.66 million registered in the corresponding period in 2016. Source: Standard Digital

Regional integration is crucial for economic, political and social development and restoration of lasting peace and stability in the East Africa region, experts have said. The experts told Xinhua in Juba that efforts spearheaded by the East African regional bloc, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) towards attaining free trade and movement of persons in the member countries would strengthen cooperation, development and prosperity in the region. Mehari Taddele Maru, an expert in international law and migration said if countries become inter-dependent and integrated too tightly, chances of fighting are very less because the harm will be too big. Maru, who also serves as Chief Strategist for IGAD, said one way of bringing peace in the IGAD region is through strong integration among bloc's members and through free movement. "We assume integration will make the region too much close to each other that they can't hurt each other without hurting one side. Through this, long term peace and security, stability and prosperity of the region can be ensured," Maru said at the end of consultative meeting on Friday evening. Maru urged East African countries to aspire towards integration for a more peaceful region and cooperation among countries, adding that the proposed IGAD protocol on free movement provides options for suspending its provisions during time of emergencies such as war and diseases outbreaks. James Okuk, a Lecturer of Political Science at the University of Juba, said integration will give countries strength, power and bigger voice in the whole region and also...

Customs agencies, globally, are facing the emerging dilemma of balancing demands to improve trade facilitation while at the same time meeting increasing needs for compliance. They are under pressure to deliver customer-focused services, collect accurate revenues and prevent illegal trade within the constraints of limited resources. This calls for modernisation of customs administration to deliver agility, accuracy, security, and transparency using systems that are empowering rather than restrictive. It is for this reason that the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) is implementing the Integrated Customs Management System (iCMS). This system consolidates all the existing customs systems into one modern, robust and more efficient system built on the latest technology with capability of seamlessly interfacing with other internal and external systems as need arises. The system is bound to be a game-changer in customs processing as it will align operations with international best practices and improve the ease of doing business not only in Kenya but also the in East African Community (EAC). In line with the World Trade Organisation’s (WTO) requirement for the simplification and harmonisation of international trade procedures, iCMS promises to further simplify and optimise customs processes. The changes involve coming up with a new system that incorporates all the subsystems built around the main clearance system as well newly defined functionalities. The current customs system, Simba 2005/2014, runs on a multiplicity of sub-systems and requires multiple points of authentication for users hence sometimes takes more time. But with the new system, it is envisioned that clearance time for...

Trial runs for the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) freight train that were scheduled to start next month could be delayed by the uncertainties posed by the looming repeat presidential election. Transport Cabinet Secretary James Macharia said in an interview that although the Chinese contractor was committed to adhering to the project’s timelines, they had expressed reservations about the volatile political environment in the country in the run up to the October 17 polls. “As Government, we are ready to start the trials for the freight train. The trials should begin in October and end in December as we look forward to commencing full freight train operations in January 2018. However, we have to address the concerns of our partners first before we can start the trials,” said Mr Macharia. Trial runs for the SGR freight train are scheduled to start on October 31 while full commercial services will kick off in January next year. Complicated matters A ruling by the Supreme Court annulling the election of President Uhuru Kenyatta last month has thrown the country back into political limbo, with most investors assuming a wait-and-see attitude. The private sector in its post-election analysis termed August the ‘worst’ month in four years, with the country having come to a near-standstill due to a heightened political environment that saw the Opposition challenge the presidential polls outcome in court, leading to the repeat election. China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC), the company tasked with the initial construction of the railway and also runs...

The Mombasa port registered an 11.9 per cent growth in the cargo it handled in the first six months of this year, according to new Kenya Ports Authority data. The port management in a report released on Tuesday credited the growth to recent expansion activities, including the construction of a second container terminal last year. The terminal was put up at a cost of $300 million (Sh30.9 billion) and is 900 metres long with three docking berths. It provides an additional cargo-handling capacity of 550,000 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) annually. According to the report, the port handled 15 million tonnes of cargo between January and June compared with 13.4 million tonnes in the same period last year. “During the first six months of 2017, imports accounted for 12.7 million tonnes against 11.3 million handled in the same 2016 period, an increase of 12 per cent. The port again handled 1.87 million tonnes in exports, up 0.5 per cent on the 1.86 million tonnes handled in the same period last year,” said KPA. Despite election uncertainties that have previously seen countries in the hinterland take a more cautious approach while importing through the Mombasa port, KPA said none of them scaled down their operations in the run-up to the August 8 polls. The countries that import their cargo through the port of Mombasa include Uganda, Burundi, Rwanda, South Sudan, and eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. In the first week alone after the Supreme Court made its historic ruling, KPA said...

China’s One Belt One Road initiative (OBOR) was launched in 2013. It is designed to improve trade infrastructure beyond China’s borders in Asia and Europe. It is often overlooked, however, that OBOR also involves projects in Africa. In regard to major investments there, Julia Breuer of Ruhr-University Bochum suggests it would be more accurate to speak of “two” belts. Hotspots of Chinese infrastructure development in East Africa are Djibouti, Egypt, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Zambia and Angola. In May 2017, the 472 kilometre standard gauge railway (SGR) link between the Indian Ocean port of Mombasa and Kenya’s  capital Nairobi opened. It was largely financed with Chinese money. According to Breuer’s study, Chinese-built railway links are gradually forming a network throughout East Africa. In Djibouti, for instance, the Chinese helped to finance the construction of the port  of Doraleh and made sure it was connected by railway to the important neighbour and trading partner Ethiopia – a landlocked country. A pipeline was built as well. Both Doraleh port and the 730 kilometre long railway to Addis Ababa became operational this year, according to Breuer’s study, which was recently published by Stiftung Asienhaus, a non-governmental German think tank. There are further plans to link Addis Ababa to Kenya’s SGR. That would make rail transport to South Sudan, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi possible, as Breuer writes. Furthermore, China wants to revitalise the 1,900 kilometre long Tanzania-Zambia Railway which was built with Chinese help in the 1970s. Among other things, it served to transport Zambian copper...

East Africa's bloc, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) seeks to achieve free movement of persons, goods and services among the seven member states before the end of this year, officials said Wednesday. Speaking during a national consultative meeting about the IGAD Protocol on free movement of persons in the region, Abdelrahim Ahmed Khalil, Head of IGAD Liaison Office in South Sudan, said the regional bloc has embarked on consultations with all member states to ensure that the protocol is agreed upon before the end the year. Khalil said the meeting seeks to gather information on benefits and barriers to free movement of persons in the IGAD region and also generate recommendations from the nine member countries towards accomplishment of a protocol that guarantees free movement in the region. "We have already held consultative meetings for Uganda, now we are in South Sudan and next time we are going to other countries; Ethiopia, Sudan, and Kenya, all these will be finalized hopefully before the end of this year and we have the Protocol consulted and agreed," Khalil said. The Protocol on Free Movement of Persons is aimed at promoting the regularization of the high volume of informal movement that currently takes place in the IGAD region, and is to increase the opportunities for legal mobility. Khalil said IGAD has been engaged in seeking ways to strengthen regional cooperation and free movement of persons, goods and services for the last 30 years. He added that once completed, it would promote mobility...