Browsing: EABC

• Limited infrastructure, lack of standardized regulations and high air transport costs are among the challenges affecting the air transport sector in the East African Community according to a new report by East Africa Business Council. 
• According to the report, limited liberalization of air transport contributes to high flight ticket rates and visa restrictions limit the movement of non-residents into the EAC region.
• The report calls for an EAC single air transport services agreement in a bid to lower the cost of air transport within the region. 

Air Transport costs in the East African Community are higher than those in Europe and other African countries according to a new report by East Africa Business Council. 

According to the report, the ticket price per kilometre in the EAC region is more than twice the ticket price for destinations in Europe and other countries in Africa.

‘‘The average ticket price per km in …

• The private sector in the community has been urged to drive the buy and build East Africa initiative
• Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) in the EAC dropped by 43% to USD. 4.9 billion in 2020
• Jobs declined by 2%, wiping out the gains made in previous year

Trade between East Africa Community countries dropped by 5.5% to USD. 5.9 billion in 2020 due to COVID-19 while exports from the bloc to the world hit 16.2 billion in 2020 a 3% boost in comparison to  2019.

This is according to the East Africa Business Council CEO John Bosco Kalisa who urged the private sector in the community to drive the buy East African, build East Africa narrative.

He added that the campaign is central in driving the economic recovery agenda for the EAC bloc amid COVID-19 pandemic.

He spoke during a webinar on EAC Trade & Investment Recovery amidst COVID-19 organized by …

Private sector players in the region have expressed optimism in making steps towards the recovery of Covid-19.

This follows a commitment by the East African Community Secretariat to prioritize strengthening public-private sector partnerships between the private sector in the region and the EAC Partner States governments, to jointly invest in vaccine manufacturing in the region.

The EAC Secretary-General, Dr Peter Mathuki said that there was a need for a coordinated approach in handling COVID-19 in the region and emphasized the need for local production of vaccines.

“EAC is working on strengthening partnerships between the private sector and EAC Partner States’ governments, to jointly establish an investment in vaccine manufacturing, to ensure the region can produce and avail vaccines to East Africans. Truck drivers transporting goods across the region should also be included among the priority groups who need to be vaccinated,” Dr Mathuki said.

Mathuki also noted that the EAC …

The EAC bloc should urgently work to attract international investors and embark on joint regional investments in the vaccine manufacturing industry for quick economic recovery.

This is according to East African Business Council Chairman Nicholas Nesbitt who is calling for a coordinated approach on COVID-19 measures to spur EAC economic recovery and growth.

Nesbitt noted that joint EAC investment offers a larger pool of capital resources, expertise and market.

At the same time, EAC’s board has directed the EABC Secretariat to champion advocacy on the adoption of open skies and one network area to reduce the cost of doing business in the region.

The board said that open skies attract regional tourism and improve consolidation of EAC exports to overseas markets such as horticulture.

According to the board, open skies are also critical in supporting the resilience and recovery of tourism, hospitality and transport sectors, which were highly impacted by …

Business people in the East African Community are now set to benefit through prompt resolution and intervention of issues disrupting trade, following the launch of the EAC-EABC Technical Working group (TWG).

Based in Arusha Tanzania, the Technical Working Group launched by the East African Community (EAC) and East African Business Council (EABC) – the umbrella body bringing together private sector associations in East Africa- is tasked with receiving and synthesizing issues received from the private sector at various levels and advise on appropriate solutions.

A statement by the EAC-EABC has revealed that the team will be chaired by EAC Director General for Customs and Trade, Kenneth Bagamuhunda and co-chaired by EABC CEO John Bosco Kalisa. It will also entail members from the national apex private sector associations in the EAC region.

The team will be responsible for following up on challenges disrupting intra-EAC trade raised by businesses and support their …

Commissioning of an Agricultural Trade Information System (ATMIS) in the country will spur rapid growth of the economy as farmers, agro-dealers, regulators and consumers interact easily online.

TradeMark East Africa`s (TMEA) Country Director, John Ulanga said ATMIS is a powerful digital platform that brings together all agriculture stakeholders including experts in the field and markets for commodities.

`Digitization of the agriculture sector will contribute towards rapid economic growth in the East African region because it will provide access of our commodities to the regional market,` Ulanga said while opening training of stakeholders on the how to use ATMIS in Dar es Salaam last week.

He said among other things, the platform will be used by Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives to issue permits for various goods and services but also allow farmers and agro dealers pay fees and commission online.

Ulanga further noted that TMEA has invested in the development…

That will be decided during the forthcoming African Union meeting slated to take place in the next three months, according to the officials who gathered in Arusha on Thursday 25^th April, 2019.

The proposed African Continental Free Trade Area is not simply a `Free Trade Agreement` it is about establishing a unified continental market with 1.2 billion potential customers and where the private sector is the major engine to make it happen.

This was the tone from the discussions of the meeting held in Arusha about how the East African Private Sector including Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) could benefit from the African Continental Free Trading Area (AfCFTA)

The one-day meeting, organized jointly by the East African Business Council (EABC) and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), convened close to 40 key players from the region`s private sector. The office for Eastern Africa of ECA estimates large …

Members of East Africa`s private sector including small and medium size enterprises are preparing to exploit the over Tshs.2.7 trillion ($1.2 billion) continental market after endorsement of African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCTA).

At their meeting in Arusha on Thursday 25^th April,2019, members of East Africa Business Council (EABC) who teamed up with United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) said they foresee large potential gains from the AfCFTA, including an increase in intra-African exports of Eastern Africa by nearly Tshs.2.3 trillion ($1 billion) and job creation of 0.5 to 1.9 million

`Together African economies have a collective gross domestic product (GDP) of $2.5 trillion, making it the 8<sup>th</sup> largest economy in the world. That makes the continent much more attractive to investment, both from within and from outside the continent, ` said Andrew Mold, the acting Director of ECA in Eastern Africa.`This should encourage business people to …