[vc_row][vc_column][rev_slider alias="tunduma-border-11"][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Rwanda Utilities Regulatory Authority (RURA) and Trademark East Africa (TMA) signed a USD 600,000 deal to facilitate digitization of key processes that will improve the authority’s ability to provide services to traders, monitor and enforce compliance to standards on selected imports. The Funding is provided by United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (DFID) through TMA. This Funding to RURA is part of TMA’s USD 57Million programme with the Government of Rwanda (GOR); that was launched in 2018. Within this, TMA works with various Rwanda Government Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) as well as the Private Sector and Civil Society organizations to support hard and soft infrastructure interventions that reduce cost of doing business, improve efficiency of key trade processes, build capacity of local industries to produce and/or manufacture world class standards goods, and build linkages to markets. This funding will go towards supporting the adoption of a Converged Licensing Management System that will enhance compliance to standards and enforce regulation in Rwanda’s trade environment by reducing transaction time and cost incurred by businesses through effective trade systems and procedures. The project will also digitize licensing, inspection of imported electronics and allied goods and protection of Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs). The project will also contribute towards Government of Rwanda’s ambition to have zero trips and zero paper in all Government services. The two partners made the announcement of this support during the signing of a Partner Support Agreement and Project Charter today at RURA headquarters in Kigali. TMA’s Rwanda Country...

Lusaka, 30th October 2019: The Common Market for East and Southern Africa (COMESA), a regional economic community and TradeMark Africa (TMA), one of the largest aid-for-trade organisations worldwide, have today signed a partnership to  boost trade facilitation initiatives in the East African Community (EAC) and COMESA regions. The agreement was signed by Chileshe Mpundu Kapwepwe, Secretary General, COMESA and Frank Matsaert, CEO, TMA. TMA’s operations across eight countries, working with government, private sector and civil society to address high trade costs in Eastern Africa and support export growth, is well-positioned to support COMESA on its vision for growth through trade and investments. The partnership prioritises areas of common interest to both organisations including: Implementation of trade facilitation initiatives in the East African Community and COMESA regions through application of respective regional and International instruments such as those under the World Customs Organisation and the World Trade Organisation; Improvement of border infrastructure and management procedures; Automation and other digital trade facilitation initiatives for improvement of Cargo clearance and other regulatory procedures aimed at enhancing efficiency and exchange of information; Elimination of Non-Tariff barriers to trade; Initiatives to build capacity and support private sector participation in trade and regional integration activities; Improving infrastructure and application of Technical Standards and Sanitary and Phyto-Sanitary measures; Reducing the cost, time and other barriers in the movement of transit goods through electronic monitoring, regional transit guarantees and other initiatives; Improving efficiency along the major trade and transport corridors including logistics and monitoring performance along such corridors;...

Kigali, 21 October 2019:  President Paul Kagame, on Monday, officially inaugurated the Kigali logistics platform, Rwanda’s largest inland cargo handling facility as the country bids to become a regional logistics hub. The Kigali Logistics Platform was constructed by Dubai Ports World, a United Arab Emirates firm under a 25-year concession agreement with the Government of Rwanda signed in 2016. It has been operational since September 2018 year in test mode. TradeMark Africa with funding from UKs Department for International Development (DFID) provided transaction advisory services which informed the establishment of the facility attracting investments from Dubai Ports World. In 2016, DP World was granted a 25-year concession to develop and operate a new logistics centre in Kigali, Rwanda. The DP World Kigali Logistics project is a greenfield concession agreement. The first phase will be built on 90,000m² (969,000 sq. ft) with a 12,000m² (129,000 sq. ft) container yard and a 19,600m² (211,000 sq. ft) warehousing facility. Estimated annual capacity is 50,000 TEUs and 640,000 tonnes of warehousing space. Total project cost is estimated at $35 million, and further development will be phased in line with demand growth. Rwanda aims to enhance the country’s logistics industry to support the export of products for regional and international markets. The DP World Kigali Logistics Centre is expected to significantly contribute to the development of this strategy. Speaking at the event, H.E. President Kagame said; “I congratulate Dubai ports on successfully completing the test phase, which has already demonstrated significant reductions in truck turn-around...

[vc_row][vc_column][rev_slider alias="climate-change-11"][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]PRESS RELEASE Tunduma, 5th October 2019: H.E. John Pombe Joseph Magufuli, President of the United Republic of Tanzania and H.E Edgar Lungu, President of the Republic of Zambia officially launched the Tunduma One Stop Border Post (OSBP) located on the Tanzania/Zambia border, today. The OSBP ensures effective border control mechanisms are in place. It will boost trade by cutting the time taken to clear goods between the two nations, thus contributing to a reduction in transport cost, whilst increasing volumes of transhipment cargo through the Dar es salaam Corridor. On average trucks leaving Tanzania take about 2.5 days to cross the Tunduma border into Zambia. It is expected that time to cross the border will reduce by at least a third. Over the years, delays in cross border clearance were attributed to duplication of handling procedures on either side of the border, poor institutional arrangement and cargo management systems, inadequate physical infrastructures and services and immigration management. The new established OSBP is envisioned to address some of these challenges. Construction of the Tunduma OSBP including systems and other related soft infrastructure was carried out with funding of US$7.8 million from the United Kingdom through the Department for International Development (DFID). The OSBP investment includes office buildings, roads and parking yards, cargo verification bays, scanner shed, passenger sheds, targeting booths, warehouse and canopies, ICT networks and hardware, furniture, and institutional support to the border agencies. Tunduma is the busiest transit and entry point in Tanzania linking transit trade destined for...

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Geneva, July 3rd, 2019: TradeMark Africa (TMA) has today signed a $3.14 M financing agreement with the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) which is aimed at ensuring that EAC countries comply with the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA). The agreement was signed by TMA CEO, Frank Matsaert and the Secretary General of UNCTAD, Dr Mukhisa Kituyi in Geneva. The initial TradeMark Africa (TMA) and United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) Financial Aid Arrangement was signed in 2015 and implemented from early 2016 with three components: (I) Trade Facilitation (TF); (II) Trade Portals and (III) Gender. The main objective of component I was to assist in setting up the institutional environment for Trade Facilitation in five East African Community (EAC) Partner States (PS); Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda. The main activity was focused on creating the National Trade Facilitation Committees (NTFCs) in the five mentioned PS and to empower them through a capacity building program allowing them to coordinate and supervise their national TF processes, including implementation of the World Trade Organisation Trade Facilitation Agreement (WTO TFA). The main achievements of the capacity building program were WTO TFA ratification by Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda and the notification of A measures by the EAC PS in 2015 and the B and C measures for Rwanda in June 2018. As of 2017, the five EAC countries have had their NTFC legally established and operationally functional. The current cooperation agreement was foreseen to end in December 2017. However,...

Kampala, 9 July 2019:  Today, the DRC Directorate of Customs and Excise (DGDA) and the Ugandan Revenues Authority (URA) signed the Regional Electronic Cargo Tracking System (RECTS) standards operating procedures, marking the launch of the RECTs control centre extension to DRC cargo. This project is facilitated by TradeMark Africa (TMA) through a $642,000 fund from the Department of International Development (DFID). RECTs is now operational in Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and now DRC. The project will be implemented in three phases with the first phase being the launch of the Uganda Office, the second phase will be opening of the Goma office in eastern DRC while the final phase will be the launch of the Kinsasha command center. The introduction of an electronic cargo tracking system to the Northern Corridor will decrease transit costs by reducing lengthy transit times caused by physical checks in transit countries and across the DRC territory. The system will also reduce the risk of freight diversion between the place of origin and checkpoints. As a result, it will effectively combat fraud and increase the country's tax revenues. The RECTS will also benefit the eastern Africa region as a whole in which goods to or from DRC will transit including; Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and Kenya. TMA’s support to the initiative includes technical assistance for the assessment and understanding of needs and requirements for the system to be in place, as well as material assistance, spanning from the provision of the IT equipment and systems for a pilot DRC...

Kigali, 23 May 2019:  Today, TradeMark Africa (TMA) and Rwanda’s trade body, the Private Sector Federation (PSF) announced a new Public-Private Sector Dialogue (PPD) for trade and investment programme and support to women entrepreneur’s programme. TMA will fund both programmes with US$2.26 Million over a period of four years. The two organisations made the announcement during the signing of a grant agreement, which also marked the kick-off of the first phase, which will run for two years. PSF which is the umbrella of all business in Rwanda said the Public-Private Sector Dialogue (PPD) for Trade and Investment programme, will build mechanisms that support the private sector to actively and meaningfully participate resolving local and regional trade issues; and especially pushing for resolution of matters affecting Rwanda. For example, as a land locked country, Rwanda contends with numerous non-tariff barriers along the key transport corridors from port to destination, leading to high transport costs. Removal of such non-tariff barriers would greatly reduce transport related costs.  “We have identified priority issues like regional transport logistics which, if resolved can reduce transport costs and time in Rwanda,” said PSF CEO, Stephen Ruzibiza . “We may have the disadvantage of having no port. Therefore our aim is to make the country land linked; and we will continue to work with the government of Rwanda to reform customs and adopt Information Communication Technology for Trade with the aim of further reducing time and costs; with a unified voice we expect to push for a reduction...

Dar es salaam June 3rd 2019 - TradeMark Africa (TMA) and Tanzania Private Sector Foundation (TPSF) have today signed a grant agreement to support Public Private Dialogue (PPD) in Tanzania. The three years grant amounting USD 1,190,000 (equivalent to TZS 2.7 billion) is expected to end in June 2022. The grant is expected to improve sectoral dialogues amongst the private sector, and between public and private sectors through with a specific focus on trade, logistics and transports, taxes, customs, standards, and Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) with the aim of improving the business environment and attract investments in the country. In his remarks Mr. John Ulanga TMA’s Country Director said  “We are glad today to sign this agreement which is going to help the private sector to dialogue with the government in a more constructive way backed up with data. TradeMark Africa strongly believes in the importance of collaboration between the Government and Private Sector, and that can only be achieved through effective dialogues. When the two work together collaboratively, a lot more can be achieved, and the cost of doing business will reduce hence making our country more competitive” Mr. Ulanga added that “Tanzania has the biggest advantage in the East and Central Africa Region due to its geographical location.  Bordered by six countries, Tanzania deserves to be the Trade and Logistics Hub of the region.  Therefore, this grant will help in the conversations amongst private sector, and between public and public sector on how to ensure Tanzania can take...