By Arkebe Oqubay ADDIS ABABA – To the surprise of many, African governments have responded swiftly and boldly to the COVID-19 crisis. Ethiopia’s unconventional approach, for example, reflects the country’s limited financial and human resources, as well as the low level of available international support. Despite these severe constraints, the results so far have been […]
In light of the various disruptions to business and supply chains across the region due to COVID-19, it is crucial that we support regional production and trade of essential supplies such as masks and sanitizers; furthermore, address the challenges regarding air cargo logistics within COMESA, Marday Venkatasamy, the COMESA Business Council Chairperson has said. Venkatasamy, […]
Since the first case of Covid-19 was reported in the Great Lakes region in mid-March 2020, small scale traders have been unable to cross borders as they have traditionally done either to buy or sell goods. The regional supply of primary agricultural commodities, most of which are traded under the Simplified Trade Regime (STR), especially […]
COMESA region currently has the lowest electricity generation with approximately 630 million people living without reliable access to electricity and 790 million people forced to rely on solid biomass to cook their food and heat their homes. Studies show that about 1.3 billion people worldwide still lack access to modern energy. However, the situation is […]
By Agnes Igoye KAMPALA – Perhaps the most effective health interventions in the battle against COVID-19 so far have been behavioral: social distancing and improved hygiene, especially hand-washing. For the world’s 70 million displaced people – especially the millions living in cramped camps and informal settlements – such habits can be virtually impossible. Add to […]
By Wambua Mutua Deal makers are looking forward for investments and M&A activities to pick up in last quarter of 2020. East Africa investments are set to remain at low levels through 2020 with full recovery unlikely until first quarter of 2021 as the world continues to grapple with the current pandemic and its economic […]
The Kenya Railways is targeting to serve up to 230,000 passengers a day when the expansion project of the Nairobi Commuter Rail network is complete at the end of June. To achieve this, the Kenya Railways is engaged in the construction of Commuter Stations at Kikuyu, Embakasi Village, Pipeline, Donholm, Dandora, Kahawa, Ruiru, Athi River, […]
Rwanda has not witnessed any disruptions in the supply of seeds to its farmers despite the lockdown to control the spread of COVID-19, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources. The Ministry said the country is on course to achieve its target of being self-sufficient in seed supply. It is also exploring the […]
Global Augmented Identity solutions provider, IDEMIA Identity & Security, has appointed Henry Mkuzi as its East African Region Sales Director as part of the company’s plans to strengthen local presence and expand its regional footprint. Mkuzi will be tasked with establishing Uganda as IDEMIA’s regional hub through securing strategic business partnerships as the world adopts […]
COMESA will develop an online platform for exchanging information on the availability of essential products within the COMESA Member States as part of the response measures to the COVID-19 pandemic. This was among key decisions made by the extraordinary meeting of the COMESA Council of Ministers. “The impact of COVID-19 has made it clear that […]
Rwanda, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo are impressed with the operations at the Naivasha Inland Container Depot in Kenya. Envoys from the three countries paid a visit to the ICD which started operations this month and expressed confidence it will serve their landlocked countries well. They envoys include Rwandan High Commissioner to […]
Kenya Railways will now direct all-cargo freights from Mombasa to the Naivasha Inland Container Depot (NICD) for onward transportation to neighbouring countries, Kenya Transport Cabinet Secretary James Macharia has said. Macharia said this will boost the movement of goods in the region which has been hard hit by the lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic. […]
On April 27th this year, President Yoweri Museveni met with representatives from Tanzania led by the Managing Director of Kagera Sugar Limited, Seif Ally Seif to finalise exportation of 20,000 Metric Tonnes of brown sugar to the United Republic of Tanzania by the end of May 2020. This was shortly after the President had assented […]