Kenya, as well as the other East African Community (EAC) countries, is fast emerging as an investment destination for multinational companies, following the establishment of a common market in 2010. The common market is attractive to investors because it currently has more than 153 million consumers. The European Union has been negotiating a bilateral agreement with the EAC — the Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) that could greatly impact the EAC market structure. Local firms stand to lose to foreign companies with greater capacity under the agreement in sectors such as agriculture, retail, horticulture, fisheries, textile and clothing, dairy, and meat if adequate safeguards are not established under the agreement. This brings to light the need to enhance a competitive economy within the EAC though the implementation of a regional competition law regime to protect consumers and small enterprises from unfair business practices. A competitive market would mean more choice, better quality and lower priced products for consumers, and easier market access for new firms. Moreover, it would mean that measures would be put in place to curb abuse of dominance, market sharing, and concentrated mergers and acquisitions by firms with substantial market share. The most effective way to achieve this would be for the EAC member states to enforce regional competition legislation and encourage the enactment of national competition laws and establishment of independent competition agencies. The EAC Competition Act, 2006 has already been ratified by member states, and national competition legislation enacted in all member countries except Burundi and...

Kampala. Organisations should invest more in mentoring women for top leadership position, says a senior United Nations official in Uganda.
Speaking at the fourth annual women leadership conference last week in Kampala, the United Nations Development Programme resident representative in Uganda, Ms Ahunna Eziakonwa-Onochie, said women are good at reforming and transforming organisations. She said investing in women is not just good for corporate businesses, but also good for growing economies around the world. 
“Invest in gender equity at work place. Institutions/companies that embrace gender diversity on their boards and in management often experience improved performance and profitability as a result,” she said. Source: Daily Monitor

On behalf of the British Government, I congratulate the Kenyan Government on the progress it has made this year to qualify as one of the global top ten reformers on the ease of doing business. The progress that Kenya is making against the Ease of Doing Business indicators may seem very remote from the lives of ordinary Kenyan businesses and households, but is actually very significant for three reasons. Firstly, it can result in increased domestic investment and jobs. Lets take the progressKenya has made in cutting all the red tape around starting a business, which is one of the reforms that the World Bank has recognised. In Mombasa this has brought the time down to get a Business License from 7 days to less than 1 hour, using an online platform. Evidence suggests that this can have a number of benefits: It increases the number of firms entering a market, which increases competition and productivity; it can also incentivize businesses to formalize, since the high costs of doing so are a major reason why Kenya has so many informal firms. This can then give them better access to finance and the opportunity to grow and create more jobs; and as more firms register for businesses, county governments also benefit from increased revenue. The Business permit is already the third most important source for revenue for Mombasa County. So one survey of the global evidence found that a reduction in the time to start a business by a similar amount...

The WTO released online on 29 October 2015 new editions of its key statistical publications: International Trade Statistics, Trade Profiles, World Tariff Profiles and Services Profiles. The four publications provide detailed breakdowns of the latest data on world trade. To mark the 20th anniversary of the WTO, International Trade Statistics 2015looks back at world trade from 1995 to the end of 2014. The publication features a variety of charts to highlight the most noteworthy trends in world trade over the past 20 years. Numerous tables provide more detailed data while a chapter on methodology explains how the data are compiled. The publication is available first in electronic format, with a print version to follow in mid-November. Data can be downloaded from the WTO web site in Excel and PDF formats and from a searchable database as well as from the WTO's International Trade and Market Access Data online application. French and Spanish versions of the publication will be available online shortly. We invite you to provide your feedback on the publication by filling in the ITS 2015 Survey. World Tariff Profiles 2015 provides a unique collection of data on tariffs imposed by WTO members and other economies. It is jointly published by the WTO, the International Trade Centre (ITC) and the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). The first part of the publication provides summary tables showing the average tariffs imposed by individual economies. The second part provides a more detailed table for each economy, listing the tariffs it...

in Rwanda are to get better and more efficient services from Rwanda Development Board (RDB) as the institution automates critical services. RDD and Trade Mark East Africa today unveiled a new online system that will enable the former to serve its clients effectively and efficiently at the click of a button. This ends the need to visit RDB offices by clients as all services will be offered online. Speaking during the launch, Yvette Umutoni, the Head of Investment at RDB said: "This launch couldn't have come at a better time - a time when Rwanda just hosted the Transform Africa conference. We are on the right direction towards adopting technologies that benefit investors and the country in general," she said. Under the new arrangement, all key government agencies dealing with investors will operate under one platform. The e-portal will link and exchange important information with among others, electronic single window and online business registration. This will further speed the process of application for investment certificate, tax exemption requests and environment impact assessment. The process of applying for investment certificates has been tedious with a lot of paperwork. It's estimated that the portal will reduce the processing time by more than half. The transparency offered will also lead to increased compliance and informed resource allocation. Source: Rwanda Focus

Obtaining investment registration and environment impact assessment certificates will be more efficient and cheaper following the launch of a new online platform. The electronic portal (e-portal) will enable investors to submit applications for the issuance of certificates, and processing of tax exemption requests online. The platform, launched on Friday by the Rwanda Development Board (RDB) and TradeMark Africa (TMA), is expected to enhance efficiency in the processing and issuance of licences, including the investment registration and EIA certificates, Yvette Umutoni, the RDB division manager for investment promotion and facilitation, said. “Online platforms drive the ease of doing business in any country. We, therefore, decided to adopt the technology to further reduce the cost and time it takes for one to apply and get certificates,” Umutoni said. As the one-stop-centre for investments, RDB does not issue certificate of operation to investors unless they submit an EIA plan approved by the Rwanda Environment Management Authority. However, the process of obtaining these documents has been entirely paper-based, costing investors a lot of money and time. Mark Nkurunziza, the RDB chief financial officer, said the new online platform will significantly reduce the processing time (by more than half the time investors used previously - from about two days to one day). It also means that all the processes, which involve screening, site assessments and all other compliances required by RDB, can be tracked by investors, he added. “Investors coming to Rwanda will now find it easier to register their businesses. Importantly, the e-portal will support...

DAR ES SALAAM, TANZANIA - Spintelligent, a major business consultancy in sub-Saharan Africa, is helping to organise the next AgriBusiness Congress East Africa set for next January in Dar es Salaam. The consultancy has said agriculture is the newest addition to Spintelligent’s portfolio of conferences and exhibitions. Shanaaz Adams, Agribusiness Congress East Africa event director said last week, “The enthusiasm with which the agricultural industry and regional authorities have embraced Agribusiness Congress East Africa right from the launch of this event, shows that we are addressing a real need in the sector for a meeting place for private and public sector stakeholders throughout the East African region, key decision makers, industry suppliers and farmers of all scales, to discuss critical issues facing the sector, learn from case studies and network.” In a statement in run-up to the two-day event at Dar’s Mlimani Conference Centre Spintelligent saud: ‘The agriculture sector is regarded as one of the most critical industries for the African continent due to its economic potential, projected as a $1 trillion industry in Sub-Saharan Africa alone by 2030.  Adams said: “Growth corridors have been identified across several regions in many East African countries. With advantageous policies, ample arable land, a stable economy and government, and a renewed focus on agriculture, Tanzania is a model East African country.” ‘Spintelligent’s agriculture events connect agricultural professionals – from small farmers to commercial farming enterprises – to industry experts, leading global equipment and machinery suppliers, seed and agrochemical producers, irrigation and water management...

ARUSHA, TANZANIA - The East African Community (EAC), is pushing for a long-term preferential trade agreement with the United States to eliminate the fear of unilateral withdrawal of the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) by the Federal government. Trade  between the EAC and the US reached $2.8 billion in 2014. The US exported $2 billion worth of goods ,but only imported $743 million in items. EAC believes the limitation of AGOA is that it is unilateral and can be withdrawn anytime. This year the US extended the AGOA up to September 30, 2025, but the EAC thinks that this span of 10 years is insufficient for increasing trade volume by leaps and bounds. Hence, the EAC recently submitted its plea to Michael Froman, the United States Trade Representative (USTR) on the modus operandi and the time to begin negotiations on the pact. According to sources, the Community is looking for a trade partnership similar to the one it shares with EU. This provides protection against undue competition. The EAC also believes it has not been able to utilise the US quota-free market under AGOA since the agreement does not match the World Trade Organization’s structure for free trade agreements due to its 10-years duration of operations. Source: East African Business Week

President Kenyatta is right. The East African Community and the whole integration project needs ideas that spark the imagination. This should not be a one-off thing, but a permanent campaign to drum into the people of East Africa how economic integration can change their lives for the better. From my observations, occasionally we hear of awareness campaigns that come and go, but leave no lasting impact. We need noise. With such things as social media, I am sure we can do better. Source: East African Business Week

Investors to score big as Rwanda Development Board automates critical processes Kigali, 22 October, 2015: Investors to Rwanda should expect better and more efficient services from Rwanda Development Board (RDB) as the government arm automates critical services offered to investors. The RDB and TradeMark Africa today unveiled a new online system that will enhance the capacity of RDB’s One Stop Centre to process and issue licensing certificates including the Investment Registration and Environment Impact Assessment Certificates, at the click of a button. [caption id="attachment_10147" align="alignleft" width="600"] TradeMark Africa Rwanda Country Director Hannington Namara (Right) and Rwanda Development Board’s Chief Financial Officer Mark Nkurunziza (Left) during the launch of RDB’s One Stop Center online portal[/caption] This will bring key government agencies responsible for the entire investor experience under one screen. The portal will link and exchange important information with among others: Rwanda Electronic Single Window, Online Business Registration, this will further speed the process of application for investment certificate, tax exemption requests and environmental impact assessment. Speaking during the launch, Mr. Mark Nkurunziza, the RDB Chief Financial Officer said, “Investors coming to Rwanda will now find it easier to register their investments. Importantly, the new online system will help us to attain our mission of transforming Rwanda into a dynamic global hub for business, investment, and innovation. The scope of our work includes all aspects related to the development of the private sector.” TradeMark Africa Rwanda Country Director added; “The launch of the portal is a sign of our continued support...