Tanzania and Uganda have decided to introduce a tax of Kenyan confectionary goods, including chocolates, sweets and ice-cream. The countries claim the 25% import duty tax is related to the use of imported industrial sugar. The news follows the rejection of certificates of origin issued by the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA). If the documents, which certify the origins of the goods and therefor determine the charge of import duties, had been accepted by the two nations, Kenya would have been guaranteed tax-free entry. This follows the rules under the East African Community (EAC) bloc, which allows locally manufactured goods to travel between Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda. Kenya has been accused by authorities in Uganda and Tanzania that its manufacturers have been using imported sugar under a 10% duty remission scheme. “This is an EAC-wide remission scheme that is available to all manufacturers in the region,” stated Phyllis Wakiaga, CEO of Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM). “We are not supposed to pay duty when we sell in the region because our competitors in the region also rely on industrial sugar imported under the same remission scheme.” Source: Business Chief

East African countries Uganda and Tanzania are being accused of restricting trade in the East African Community (EAC) after the two recently imposed taxes on Kenyan-made confectionery products like biscuits, ice-cream, sweets,  over claims that imported industrial sugar is used to produce those goods. Certificates of origin issued by the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) have been rejected by the two states who have now chosen to levy 25 per cent import duty on Kenyan confectioneries, news site Business Daily reports. In the East Africa Community common market made up of Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi, free movement of locally manufactured goods within the bloc is allowed. But authorities from Tanzania and Uganda have accused Kenyan manufacturers of trying to win the competition to their side by using industrial sugar imported under a 10 percent duty remission scheme as the region does not produce industrial sugar. But Kenyan manufacturers have argued that Uganda and Tanzania are only using the customs taxes to restrict trade. “This is an EAC-wide remission scheme that is available to all manufacturers in the region. “We are not supposed to pay duty when we sell in the region because our competitors in the region also rely on industrial sugar imported under the same remission scheme,” the Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM) chief executive Phyllis Wakiaga was quoted by the Business Daily. The KRA’s officer in charge of exports Julius Kihara also said the manufacturers should be safe from taxes as long as the trade volume falls...

Construction of Bagamoyo Port in Tanzania which upon completion will the the biggest in East and Central Africa will begin June, a government minister has said. Makame Mbarawa, the Minister for Works, Transport and Communication, said the government was in final talks with investors of China Merchants Holdings International Limited (CMHI) and the government of Oman. Construction of the port is being carried out through a collaboration of China and Oman. Also to be constructed around Bagamoyo area are over 190 industries, including the manure processing industry that will be put up by the government of Oman. Mr Mbarawa told parliament in Dodoma that although mooted in 2013, the project has been hit by delays because the government had to ensure that every project has wider impact to the country’s economy. Issues to do with compensating landowners who were to be displaced also affected the project take off. But that has been solved with China Merchants Holdings International (CMHI), a port management firm agreeing to raise money for compensation. CMHI managing director Hu Jianhua said in a statement in a recent interview that the company would run Bagamoyo port as one of its overseas ports. When fully developed, the Bagamoyo Special Economic Zone will attract about 700 industries to become a strategic investment zone in East Africa. The Bagamoyo port and its affiliate industrial zone is meant to address congestion at the old port and support Tanzania to become East Africa’s leading shipping and logistics centre. The port is located about 75 kilometres...

Tanzania’s President Dr John Pombe Magufuli on Tuesday emphasised the need and urgency for the East African Community to work harder, in unity, to fast-track the development of the six-member bloc. Magufuli was addressing a special sitting of the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) in the Tanzanian capital, Dodoma. Speaking in Kiswahili, he urged the Assembly to strive to remove “as early as possible” barriers to trade, movement of people, and others afflicting the region. He said: “Our sole responsibility is to bring development to the people we lead. It is important we understand that the East African Community is for the citizens and not the leaders”. Industry, transport and energy sectors The Tanzanian President put emphasis on lawmakers attaching importance to the sectors of industry, transport and energy, among others, as key drivers of the bloc’s development. Asking them what would be the use of having abundant resources such as minerals, and others, that do not really benefit EAC citizens, Magufuli told regional lawmakers that the lack of an enhanced industry sector costs the region a lot. By exporting raw materials, he said, the region is only enriching others while it’s poor get poorer, a situation that no rational leader in the region should tolerate and urged EALA members to leave no stone unturned in their quest to protect and advance the region’s industrial sector. “If we don’t protect our own industries we shall just remain escorts. A market of 170 million is a big market. If we have...

Delegates from South Sudan, the latest entrant into the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD), jetted into the country ahead of discussions on the ratification of the free movement of people protocol by member states. The Government of South Sudan is pushing for the regularisation of an informal movement of people that is currently taking shape in the region. The four-day IGAD meeting was due to be opened Tuesday at Sheraton Hotel in Kampala by internal affairs minister Gen. Jeje Odongo. The eight-member trade bloc has Uganda, Kenya, Sudan, South Sudan, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Somalia and Eritrea. According to IGAD officials, experts from South Sudan and other member states will discuss the proposed IGAD protocol on free movement of persons. "This high-level experts meeting will bring together high level experts from ministries, authorities, commissions and parliament of the Government of South Sudan. "The aim of this high-level experts meeting is for experts to deliberate on the provisions of the proposed IGAD Protocol on Free Movement of Persons," a statement issued by IGAD over the weekend noted. Foreign ministers from IGAD member states, delegates from the Europe Union, United Nations and key labour movement experts, are also expected to attend the meeting, where a political endorsement for fast-tracking the free movement of people protocol will be discussed. With a never-ending conflict in South Sudan, it is estimated that majority of South Sudanese are living outside their country as refugees. At 1.3 million, Uganda accommodates the largest number of South Sudanese refugees. The right...

Tanzania is eyeing Kenyan supermarkets and consumer supply chains in new efforts to revamp cross border trade between the two countries. This means that once the ongoing bilateral talks are successfully completed, Kenyans are likely to see more Tanzania products in the shelves of local supermarkets. Speaking during a press briefing on the upcoming four day Made in Tanzania exhibition set to kick off today at Kenyatta International Conference Centre, Tanzanian ambassador to Kenya Pindi Chana said this is part of the objectives of the exhibitions. "The exhibition aims is creating more awareness of Tanzania products and services to the Kenyan private sector and general public at large,” Chana said. She further noted that in the trade between the two countries, Tanzania will focus highly on the Tourism, technology Services, food stuffs, fruits, culture art and craft sectors. While giving his remarks during the press briefing, Robert Ng'ong'a, the deputy director of bilateral trade at the State department of international trade said that trade between the two countries has largely been affected by competition from other international countries. However, he refused to disclose names of the third force citing ongoing investigations on how to solve the issue, instead he said that talks are ongoing between the two countries to find the way forward and that the exhibition is as a result of the said talks. Made in Kenya exhibition week in Tanzania will also be held within the 2018/2019 financial year. This follows slowed trade between the two leading East...

News that Tanzania and Uganda are restricting entry of Kenya made ice cream, biscuits and sweets does not augur well for East Africa’s common market. A common market basically allows for free movement of locally manufactured goods, services and people. Kenyan businesses accuse neighbouring States of holding up people and goods, frustrating the goals of the common market that includes Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, South Sudan and Burundi. The latest spat has seen Tanzania and Uganda accuse Kenyan manufacturers of tilting competition in their favour by using imported raw materials. The trade barriers are unacceptable eight years since the formation of the EAC bloc. Tanzania and Uganda have been quick to impose restrictions on Kenya goods instead of giving negotiations a chance to ease the trade wars. The ambition of the region of more than 150 million people to draw foreign investment and wean EAC countries off external aid should not be allowed to die at the altar of suspicions. It should not be lost that the community collapsed in 1977 amid economic and political disagreements. Because the continent is on course to create a mega trading bloc, EAC member countries should give priority to negotiations over grand-standing for its survival. Source: Business Daily

China is using its $1 trillion-plus investment initiative in infrastructure projects as a way to expand its military footprint, projecting power and influence around the globe from the Horn of Africa into the Middle East and South Asia, according to a new report. The report, released this week by the Washington-based Center for Advanced Defense Studies (C4ADS), reviewed 15 Chinese-financed infrastructure programs, the Washington Times reported last week. C4ADS analysts found that Beijing’s focus on building ports, roads, railroads and pipelines will bolster China’s financial prowess through these spheres of economic influence. But the infrastructure network created through development projects under the initiative also lays down the logistical backbone for China’s military, the report found. Earlier this month, China and Ghana signed agreements totaling $66 million to support the Jamestown fishing port complex and implementations of other projects, Ghana News Agency reported.  As part of the bilateral agreement, China is providing $50m for the construction of the port. Construction on the fishing port complex is expected to start this year. Also, Chinese investors want to transform the Cameroonian city of Kribi into the largest seaport in central Africa, DW reported last December Kribi's autonomous port is one of the biggest Chinese investment projects anywhere in the world. When it opens for business, it will be the largest deepwater port in central Africa. Some 85% of the €1.1 billion ($1.3 billion) budget for the new harbor project is financed by the Export-Import Bank of China, with the rest falling to the government...

DAR ES SALAAM, April 23 (Xinhua) -- A Tanzanian government minister said on Monday construction of the much awaited Bagamoyo port in the east African country's Coast region will begin in June this year. Makame Mbarawa, the Minister for Works, Transport and Communication, said the government was in final talks with investors of China Merchants Holdings International Limited (CMHI) and the government of Oman. Mbarawa told the National Assembly in the capital Dodoma that on its completion, the Bagamoyo port was expected to boost the country's economy and attract major investments to the country, the second largest economy in the East African region after Kenya. The minister admitted that the project has been hit by delays, saying: "The talks took too long to be completed for benefit of the nation. We had to ensure that every project has wider impact to the country's economy." Mooted in 2013 by retired President Jakaya Kikwete, construction of the port has been hit by delays over acquisition of investors. When fully developed, the Bagamoyo Special Economic Zone will become a strategic investment zone in East Africa. The Bagamoyo port and its affiliate industrial zone is meant to address congestion at the old Dar es Salaam port and support Tanzania to become East Africa's leading shipping and logistics center. Source: Xinhua News

Earlier this year, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi was in the country and, among other engagements, was to invite Rwanda to take part in the upcoming Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) summit to be held in Beijing this year. Rwanda accepted the invitation to the forum, which is among the largest platforms convening 29 member countries of the South-South cooperation, established in 2000. In an exclusive interview with Business Times, a Chinese official based in Kigali last week said that the preparations for the September summit were at an advanced stage. Hudson Wang Jiaxin, the Counselor at China’s Economic and Commercial Department in Kigali, said that this year’s summit would present a platform to discuss future investments between China and Africa. “FOCAC is a platform for China-Africa cooperation and for reciprocal dialogue with the idea to improve our socio-economic progress. This year’s summit is also the best platform to discuss future investments options and the strategies to achieve them,” he said. The previous summit was held in South Africa during which China made commitments to invest in Africa. At the Johannesburg summit, a commitment of about USD60 billion was made, thrice the USD20 billion commitment made during the 2012 FOCAC Summit. Wang noted that Rwanda has been receiving its share of the investment commitment and implementation over the past two years, most of which China had directed towards advancing the infrastructure sector. “Over the past years, right after the FOCAC summit in Johannesburg, China has been providing large sums of...