The ministry of Trade has started reviewing all trade policies with the aim of incorporating a gender provision with the sole purpose of addressing challenges faced by women as they transact business, especially exports. “Moving forward, as government, through a collaborative effort, we aim to reduce challenges that women face as traders and call upon other organisations to join us,” said Ms Amelia Kyambadde, the Trade minister, said during a trade and development forum in Kampala recently. The forum The forum was showcasing contributions made by TradeMark Africa (TMA), a non-profit organisation, towards promoting women in trade under the hashtag, #LetWomenTrade. A total of 4,776 Ugandan women have benefited from the programme since 2015, out of 25,000 women across East Africa. Ms Kyambadde added: “This programme demonstrates that public private partnerships can actually bear tangible results when fully utilised. As government, we will continue supporting partners to strengthen women and trade programmes in the country.” To increase numbers TMA chief executive officer Frank Matsaert said: “In the next five years of our strategy, we will scale up our programme and reach more than 300,000 women across East Africa.” Mr Matsaert said they have also increased market access through establishment of five cooperatives in sub-sector areas of beans, coffee, maize, handcrafts and beverages in Hoima, Kabale, Mpigi, Jinja, Masaka and Kapchorwa districts. Ms Clare Kabakyenga, one of the beneficiaries, detailed how the organisation helped her to penetrate regional markets. “I started trading to increase my income. My journey began in farming,...

Kenya has won a major diplomatic battle against neighbouring Tanzania after Uganda announced it would ship out its early crude oil exports through Mombasa port. The decision puts Uganda on course to becoming the first East African nation to export crude oil and marks a big diplomatic win for Nairobi, which has been feeling lonely after Uganda opted to team up with Tanzania in the construction of a pipeline to export its oil. The Uganda National Oil Company (Unoc) in January invited bids from freight operators to haul its initial consignments of crude oil that was produced during well testing of the Albertine Graben oilfields. “The Unoc intends to dispose of 45,211 barrels of test crude in the Albertine Graben,” the State-owned company said in a notice that requires investors to issue a bid security of $10,000 (Sh1 million). The bidding window closed on Friday and will be followed by evaluation and award of contract at the end of next month — paving the way for the trucks to hit the road. The decision has put Kampala in competition with Nairobi for East Africa’s first petrodollars. Abandoned Kenya Uganda’s decision to use the Mombasa port for its early oil shipments comes two years after it abandoned Kenya in the planned construction of a joint crude oil pipeline through Kenya’s Northern Corridor. The pipeline was to run from Uganda through Kenya’s Lokichar basin in Turkana to the proposed Lamu port. Kenya opted to forge ahead with the plans to build the...

When Djibouti makes international headlines, it is usually in connection with the many superpowers that have built military bases on its shore. France, the United States, China, Italy and Japan all have a major military presence in the tiny East African nation. But for Djibouti's government, there is another major power that is even more important: Ethiopia. It is difficult to overstate just how dependent Djibouti's economy is on its much larger neighbour. There is almost no fresh water in Djibouti, so it must import water from Ethiopia. Most of its electricity comes from Ethiopia too. Little grows in Djibouti's arid desert landscape, so fresh fruits, vegetables and grains are trucked across the Ethiopian border every day. Economically, by far Djibouti's most valuable assets are its ports. But these too are almost entirely reliant on a healthy trading relationship with Ethiopia, which, being landlocked, requires an outlet to the sea. Ethiopia is an anchor in the Horn of Africa - any disruption will have knock-on effects More than a century ago, when the old Port of Djibouti was built by the French colonisers, it was connected with a railway that linked Addis Ababa to Djibouti City. Given the size differences of the two countries - today Ethiopia's population is more than 100 million, while Djibouti's is less than 1 million - the port was never about trade with Djibouti, but trade with Ethiopia. It is no coincidence that today, the new Doraleh Container Terminal is the end of the line...

President Trump has reportedly decided to impose new tariffs of 25 percent on imports of steel and 10 percent on imports of aluminum. This comes after the Commerce Department conducted two lengthy — but mostly closed-door — investigations under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962. Under this law, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross concluded that imports of steel and aluminum threaten America’s national security and recommended that Trump impose comprehensive new import restrictions. Imposing trade restrictions to protect national security would be an unprecedented shift in U.S. policy. While there have been many historical episodes of the U.S. steel industry demanding — and being granted — import protection of some form, what is taking place this time is truly different. This kind of protection would have tremendous economic and institutional repercussions well beyond the two cases currently on Trump’s desk. Here are five reasons for that: 1) This cuts a significant amount of imports. The two investigations cover about 2 percent of total U.S. goods imports in 2017: Imports of steel were $29 billion and aluminum $17 billion. These two are the largest of all trade investigations the Trump administration has conducted — each involves much more trade than the combined imports hit by Trump’s tariffs on solar panels and washing machines, announced in January. And the proposed cuts in imports are sizable. Trump’s tariffs would go further than Ross’s recommendations, which aimed to slash steel imports by 37 percent and aluminum by 13 percent. New tariffs would probably...

The African Development Bank (AfDB) has said it is in talks with its Governors to unravel strategies that are effective and efficient in closing Africa’s $170 billion infrastructure investment gap. The bank also canvassed for support among its East and North African Governors on the need for urgent measures to match the continent’s growing population and youth unemployment, which it likened to a “ticking time bomb.” At a two-day consultation at the bank’s headquarters in Abidjan, CÕte d’Ivoire, they however, described the continent’s growing young population as a potential growth engine for the world, when harnessed. AfDB President, Akinwumi Adesina, said the good news is that the solution is within our reach and will require investments. Already, to bridge the investment gap, ensure inclusive growth, and create employment for the continent’s population, the meeting endorsed the African Development Bank-led African Investment Forum and described it as a timely opportunity to catalyse investments into projects and attract social impact financing to Africa. Tanzania’s Minister for Finance and Planning, Isdor Mpango, called for closer involvement of the private sector in financing development on the continent. “The African Development Bank is well positioned to advise and assist governments and the private sector to come up with bankable projects,” Mpango said, calling for “direct resources to provide budget support and investment opportunities.” Through the AIF scheduled for November 7 to 9, 2018, in Johannesburg, South Africa, the region’s development bank and its partners intend to showcase bankable projects, attract financing, and provide platforms for...

East African Development Bank (EADB) has secured a Sh1.5 billion ($15 million) loan from the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (Badea) for onward lending to traders in Kenya and other member countries. The purpose of the credit is to enable EADB finance imports from eligible Arab exporters to particular importers in the East African Community (EAC) countries. EADB – owned by Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Rwanda – usually funds regional projects in infrastructure, manufacturing, agribusiness and education sectors. “We have continued to build relations with new lenders and development partners. To this end, the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (Badea) has established a line of credit with the EADB of an amount of $15 million,” said EADB director-general Viviane Yeda in a statement. As at end of 2016, the EAC member states had a stake of 87.3 per cent, with African Development Bank (AfDB) holding most of the remaining shares through its 8.8 per cent shareholding, callable capital, technical assistance and funding lines. The EADB strategic plan for the period 2016 to 2020 follows a period of business growth over the previous plan period 2011 to 2015 and an in-depth review of EADB operations and related operations policies in 2015. In December last year, Global Credit Ratings (GCR) affirmed the long-term and short-term national scale ratings assigned to the regional lender of AA+ (UG), (KE), (TZ), (RW), and accorded it a stable outlook, besides affirming its foreign currency international scale rating of BB+. Source: Business Daily

The East African Community member countries have been asked on to increase intra-regional trade so as to support the industrialisation agenda of the region. According to statistics from the World Bank, Africa’s share of global trade was at 2% three years ago and has gone down further by a percentage point. This means that the rest of Africa is growing its share in global market while Africa is not. This is backed by reports that the amount of trade Africa does within itself compared to other regions is low at 11%. Ali Mufuriki, a businessman and board chairman of Trademark East Africa, said Europe is at 60%, Asia has 60% and yet these do not have a free trade area. He made the remarks during the opening of the East Africa Trade and Development Forum recently. The event was organised by the trade ministry with support from Trademark East Africa. The two-day forum was aimed at creating a platform for partners and stakeholders in trade development to review, reflect and exchange ideas on the progress of Trademark East Africa and its partners. Mufuruki said for the region to achieve its industrialisation potential, there is need for member states to focus on the production of high value goods. People should be empowered with skills that will enable them work, own and drive the industries, which will in turn create jobs. He noted that EAC regional trade may not grow if cross border trade is one sided. Mufuruki cited the example of...

The UK should turn to Saudi Arabia for new trade and investment opportunities after Brexit and not a backward-looking Commonwealth, Saudi ministers said on the second day of a controversial visit to the UK by the country’s crown prince. As the UK and Saudi Arabia set out a broad ambition to strike nearly $100m of commercial deals over the next decade, the powerful Saudi energy minister, Kalid A al-Falih, told a business conference in London: “I would like to think that Saudis can be the pivotal link to a new partnership sphere for the UK that is perhaps not positioned in the past, as is the Commonwealth, but forward-looking, looking at the demographics of the Middle East, Africa, and Islamic world to which Saudi Arabia is central.” The UK should regard the kingdom as the dominant force in the Gulf and “your gateway to Africa, one of the next frontiers”, he said. Al-Falih’s pitch, emphasising that both the UK and Saudi Arabia were at “inflection points”, underlines the extent to which the Saudis sense the UK will need to step up its search for new trade partners after Brexit to replace lost EU markets. UK and Saudi entities on Thursday signed more than 18 economic agreements worth more than £1.5bn, covering education, pharmaceuticals and banking. Before heading to Chequers for a private dinner with the prime minister, the 32-year-old crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, held a round of meetings mainly at the Saudi embassy in Mayfair. Seen as the dominant...

Amidst big talk on how to raise over US$78 billion for regional infrastructure projects, Tanzania’s President John Pombe Magufuli Magufuli had tough questions for the East African Community Council of Ministers. “I am sorry I am harsh but why did the Secretary-General not tell us why they only implemented 14 out of the 200 projects earmarked in 2014?” Magufuli asked at the recently concluded 19th ordinary summit of the East African Community Heads of State at Speke Resort Munyonyo, a Kampala suburb. His question also echoed concerns the East African Community Integration process has been too slow. Political will from frontline Presidents to implement initiatives of the integration process; the appetite to spend on big infrastructure projects to connect the region and ease the cost of doing business and how to fund the planned projects appeared the central issues at the meeting. This year’s retreat was the 4th on Infrastructure Development and Financing and it aimed at reviewing progress on the implementation of the priority projects agreed upon in the 3rd Retreat held in November 2014. It also served as the 1st Retreat on Health Sector Financing and Development. Apart from current EAC Chairman and host President Museveni, Kenya’s Uhuru Kenyatta, South Sudan’s Salva Kiir, Magufuli, First Vice President of the Republic of Burundi, Gaston Sindimwo attended the meeting. Rwanda’s Minister of Infrastructure, James Musoni, represented President Paul Kagame. The meeting was organized under the theme ‘Enhancing Socio-Economic Development for Deeper Integration of the Community.’ The Presidents plan to complete...

Three criteria often cited as being key criteria in the pursuit of sustainable economic growth and social development include adequate infrastructure, macroeconomic stability and an articulate and achievable development strategy. Despite the equal importance of the three criteria noted, our focus today shall be infrastructure. The importance of infrastructure development to achieving economic posterity is a topic well canvassed. Indeed, it is commonly noted that infrastructure development is a foundation on which to build an economy. Efficient infrastructure supports economic growth, improves the quality of life, and is necessary for national security. Zeroing in to quality of life, numerous studies point at there being a direct correlation between investment in public infrastructure and quality of life. These include investments in transportation, power and communication facilities and social infrastructures to name a few. In acknowledgement of the necessity of quality infrastructure to the achievement of economic advancement, the East African region has pointed out infrastructure development as a key tool for regional development. As a step toward the achievement of this, East African Community (EAC) leaders, in the recently concluded retreat on infrastructure development and health financing and development, pledged to invest $78 billion (Sh7.9 trillion) on infrastructure development over the next ten years. This will be utilised to fund over 200 capital intensive projects, such as the Standard Gauge Railway, renewable energy and various oil and gas projects in the region. As evident from the price tag of $78 billion, infrastructure projects are highly capital intensive. Often times, these are financed...