A Sh1.6 billion ($16 million) grant-based fund that supports innovators and entrepreneurs working in the logistics and transport sector has opened entries for its second phase. Logistics Innovation for Trade (LIFT) Challenge Fund will provide grants ranging from Sh15 million ($150,000) to Sh100 million ($1,000,000) to winning proposals from innovators across the world, whose project ideas will be implemented in East Africa. LIFT is a TradeMark Africa initiative managed by Nathan Associates through a fund management team based in Nairobi. It is financially supported by the UK Department for International Development (DFID). It seeks to trigger and introduce innovative approaches to tackling freight and transport costs in the East African Community (EAC). TradeMark Africa CEO Frank Matsaert asked innovators to apply saying the challenge had enabled stakeholders to test new ideas that should reduce the cost and transport time in the EAC. “It is our hope that the entrepreneurs and innovators of the East African Community in partnership with their counterparts internationally will drive forward development through the adoption or introduction of ‘best practice’ technologies in the transport and logistics sector, enabling local businesses to compete favourably in the increasingly global economy,” said Mr Matsaert. LIFT Challenge Fund manager David Mitchell said the initiative’s impact to local entrepreneurs had been positive. “The Challenge Fund instruments fill a significant gap in the financial support needs of private businesses and the innovators that drive business activity to greater results and efficiencies,” said Mr Mitchell. Businesses in the transport and logistics sector, or...

Lack of skills and capacity among clearing and freight forwarding agents has been blamed for trade hurdles across the East African region, a new survey shows. The survey by TradeMark Africa (TMA) established that 477 clearing agents in the region had not been trained on improving trade logistics. This means that freight forwarding firms continue to incur costs such as fines imposed when clearing agents make errors on systems. The TMA survey conducted between 2011 and 2014 estimated that companies could save Sh38,500 annually if they employ trained clearing agents. TMA chief executive Frank Matsaert said business prosperity is achieved when there is a trade flow. “By training key people in the freight forwarding business, we are helping move goods quicker, save time and money and help the region develop,” he said. He said the survey was based on the premise that freight forwarders and clearing agents lacked necessary skills and capacity in clearing cargo at border points which resulted to an increase in cargo clearance costs and cargo release times. It was implemented by the Federation of East African Freight Forwarders Associations (FEAFFA) in conjunction with the East Africa Revenue Authorities (EARA). A total of 4,023 out of 4,500 freight forwarders and clearing agents were trained during the programme that sought to seal some skills gaps. The highest number of graduates in the programme were from Kenya, 1,665, while Tanzania had 1,218. Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi had 717; 299 and 164 graduates respectively. The survey projected an 84 per...

As traders rue missed opportunities relating to Uganda choosing Tanzania over Kenya on the pipeline route, other initiatives are going on to spur intra-trade in East African. Hopefully, the recent initiative by Kenya and Uganda supported by a number of global and regional bodies to create a common platform for facilitating cross-border trade in fish and fishery products, using Busia Border point will succeed. Many times, the cumbersome and punitive inspection protocols for animal, human and plant products across the countries, which have different requirements and standards, has made it difficult for intra trade between the two countries. Uganda has a bigger supply for fish products, which on many occasions go to waste, while traders in Kenya face a huge domestic demand for fish products for local and export consumption cannot access because of stringent standards and different trade regimes within the two countries. To ease the cross border trade in fish and fish products, that will allow increased intra trade within the two countries, and by extension, export to other countries, a number of activities and facilities are to be established at the Busia border point that will provide quick inspection of human, animal and plant products health both at and behind borders. The pilot is among the several initiatives being implemented by partners in the business community as a way of increasing the level of intra trade volumes in Africa including: the EAC has developed the regional sanitary and phytosanitary standards, (SPS) the Inspectors’ guide; standard Operating Procedures;...

China has pledged to finance the Tanzania-Zambia Railways (Tazara) and extend it to four other countries. Official from the three governments — China, Tanzania and Zambia —  are meeting in Dar es Salaam to put together details of the plan whose proposal include reducing the bloated Tazara workforce, The East African reported. The plan will include renovating the 1,860 kilometers track and linking Tazara to Tanzania’s new Bagamoyo port and to Malawi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda and Burundi. The plan is part of the China-Africa co-operation agenda discussed at the Forum On China-Africa Co-operation in Johannesburg in December 2015, Rowland Msiska, secretary to the Zambia Cabinet said. “Rwanda, Burundi and Eastern DR Congo will be linked through the Seleka-Mpulungu section of Tazara in Zambia, where the construction study has already been completed and is only awaiting financing,” Bruno Ching’andu, Tazara CEO, told the East African. The Citizen reported that China will take over the management and operation of the railway line in a privatization arrangement that has been termed by the Tanzanian government as turn-around strategy. Tanzania and Zambia would also review their domestic laws to provide for preferential provisions in the running of Tazara, with a view to attracting more private players. It is the only railway line in Africa that links three economic blocs, including the East African Community, COMESA and SADC, that serves more than 600 million people or half of the continent. Volume of cargo transported on the line has bee dropping over the years despite increased throughput...

The TITF will be opened by the Minister for Industries and Trade, Mr Charles Mwaijage.“The Tanga –Uganda Oil pipeline project expected to cost about $4bn (£2.8bn) has generated a lot of interest in Tanga’s business community, and of course, there would be a lot of inquires on how society could cash in on the proposed projects,” the Executive Secretary of the Tanzania Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture (TICCA), Charles Hoza said. The TCCIA and the Tanzania Trade Agency (TANTRADE) are the joint organizers of the Trade Fair that was launched with fanfare with hope to make it a big East African event four years ago. The discovered oil reserves in Uganda are estimated at some 6.5bn barrels, and the country expects to start production in 2018. France’s Total, China’s CNOOC and the Anglo-Irish company Tullow Oil hold most of the license, according to information made available here. “The pipeline to Uganda is another development opportunity that Tanga residents have been given by the government. People should come and be introduced to the various opportunities that would come with the pipeline,” said Mr Hoza. Speaking at a recent meeting in Tanga, the new TCCIA Tanga President, Peter Chisawillo challenged business men and women to attend the fair to learn how they can grab opportunities to be brought by the construction of an oil pipeline from Uganda to Tanga port. “Come to the Fair where TPDC would be in high profile and learn how to explore areas which will attract business...

KIGALI—Rwanda has announced plans to develop rail links to Indian Ocean ports through Tanzania because they were cheaper and shorter than the route transiting Kenya, says Claver Gatete, Rwanda minister of finance and economic planning. Gatete told reporters on Sunday that the Tanzania route was cheaper and would not take long to be completed compared to the Kenya route. In 2013, Rwanda, Kenya and Uganda agreed to link up to the Kenyan port of Mombasa along a standard-gauge railway estimated to cost $13 billion. Studies done by member states in the six-nation East African Community (EAC) showed that the Tanzanian option would cost Rwanda about $800 to $900 million dollars while the Kenyan one would go for $1 billion, according to the Rwanda ministry of East African Community Affairs report. “We opted for the route transiting to Tanzania during the construction of our railway line because the Kenyan route would be expensive and time consuming,” said Gatete. The Dar es Salaam-Isaka-Kigali/Keza-Musongati (DIKKM) standard gauge railway (SGR) project is expected to be completed by March 2018 and is estimated to cost three countries $5.2 billion. Eng. Jules Ndenga, acting special project implementation unit coordinator at the Rwanda ministry of Infrastructure, said that Rwanda and Tanzania had already held joint technical monitoring committee meeting to fast-track the project implementation. “We are conducting a joint development of the standard gauge railway with our counterparts from Burundi and Tanzania. We have agreed contract terms and conditions and the Rwanda Transport Development Agency (RTDA), will...

THE government has promised to work on findings and recommendations given by private sector leaders to help speed up the necessary transformation to formalise informal cross border trade. This was said by the Permanent Secretary (PS) in the Ministry of Trade, Investment and Industry, Prof Adolph Mkenda, during a dialogue on 'Challenges in Expanding Intra-Regional Trade and Investment Flows in the East African Community Common Market held in Dar es Salaam over the weekend. "We owe future generations the obligation of building a strong common market as the tool for creating a more prosperous region using the multitude of resources that the region is endowed with," he said in a speech read on his behalf by the ministry's Assistant Director in the Department of Trade Integration, Ambroce Lugenge. The seminar was organised by the Tanzania Private Sector Foundation (TPSF) and funded by Trade Mark East Africa (TMA). The objective was to raise awareness on the level of informal cross border trade as a major component of regional trade flows and promote its rapid formalisation and growth as a tool for strengthening the common market. The TMA Country Director, Dr Josephat Kweka, said his organisation is committed to support growth of trade in the region. "We will continue to work with governments and business community for the interest of the region prosperity," he said. Earlier, the TPSF Executive Director Godfrey Simbeye said informal cross border trade constitutes as high as 40 per cent of all trade flows between African countries in...

The top African trade show - which was held from May 7 to 9 - at the Inkosi Albert Luthuli Convention Centre (Durban ICC), exploded with originality and creativity of the Africa’s wealth of cultural appeal, tourism natural attractions, services and products. In the media talk facilitated by the CNN New York based news anchor Richard Quest, African tourism ministers acknowledged the need to consult and engage one another to work on the bulk of issues which hinder tourism penetration. African ministers led by Hanekom added a strong voice on how Africa countries can come together to position themselves as tourism business collaborators and promote inbound tourism in which huge opportunities have largely not been exploited. “If one quarter of African countries were to implement the open skies for Africa decision  and facilitate great air connectivity between our countries - additional jobs (job creation) and an added GDP that could be generated with obvious numerous benefits for tourism in many countries, said Derek Hanekom, South African’s tourism minister. Hanekom said that many major airlines fly to Africa from North America, Europe, Asia and other parts of the world. However, once visitors reach this continent they encounter difficulties in connectivity as well as exorbitant air fares from country to country. He said that air transport services in Africa remained a critical constraint. Hanekom, who was one of the three panelist’ tourism experts who attended the media talk including ministers from Zambia, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Lesotho, Seychelles, Swaziland, Burkina Faso and Ghana. “Africa’s...

This was revealed here on the side-lines of the Indaba, Africa’s largest tourism trade show by the CEO’s of Tourism Board from Tanzania Ms. Devota Mdachi and Kenya’s Acting CEO, Ms. Jacinta Nzioka, and Uganda’s UTB Acting Marketing Manager, Ms. Sylvia Kalembe. “While we expect a significant growth of International arrivals this year, regional markets remains a potential segment that we are happy with the response of the Indaba trade show”, said  Devota Mdachi, Tanzania Tourist Board’s Managing Director. Tanzania was represented by nearly 40 exhibitors showcasing different tourism services and products from travel agents, tour operators and hospitality industry stakeholders.  Devota said the show exposed the growth of interest for Tanzania destination from different stakeholders including hosted buyers. Intra-Africa tourism business, according to Devota, is rising with many visitors visiting Tanzania from the African continent, particularly from South Africa. Some of key investments in the lodges and hotels in Tanzania are run and managed by South African companies, one of the pull factors, according to her. Zanzibar, the Serengeti national park Mount Kilimanjaro and Ngorongoro crater dominated most of the enquiries while some shown interest in the Ruaha and Katavi national parks in the Southern Tanzania. Of interest to some enquiries, Devota said was the Kigamboni new bridge which opens up tourism beaches in the administrative and commercial capital of Tanzania, Dar es Salaam. The Tanzania stand was graced with visits by different media houses based in and out of Africa including Richard Quest, the CNN news anchor who...

The Kenyan and Ugandan currencies have gained against the dollar in the past five months, buoyed by tighter monetary policies and higher earnings. However, the Tanzanian shilling and the Rwandan franc are still depreciating. In the past week, the Kenya shilling hit 100.60 to the dollar for the first time in eight months. At the start of the year it was at 102.80, and has so far gained 1.75 per cent to the dollar. The Uganda shilling gained against the dollar on the back of a peaceful election that led to increased investor confidence, with the currency gaining 1.55 per cent since the start of the year. Prior to the election, the currency had shed close to 5 per cent as investors adopted a cautious stance. The Ugandan unit is currently trading at 3,325 to the dollar, from 3,480 in mid-January. The Rwanda franc failed to beat negative predictions that the effects of the country’s poor export earnings and a stronger dollar last year would spill over into 2016. The franc, which shed 7.6 per cent to the dollar last year, is currently trading at 774.35, down from the 747.98 to the dollar at the start of the year. Offshore investors Wilson Kibe, a treasury dealer at ECB Bank, said the Kenya shilling is expected to dip below the 100 unit mark in a few weeks, when proceeds from the sale of a nine-year infrastructure bond draw in dollars from offshore investors. “For the past month, we have seen a...