By Vincent Kariuki
Kenya is calling on member states of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) to get rid of the non-tariff barriers and align their trade policies, as the area is getting ready for the 24th COMESA Summit of Heads of State and Government, which will be held in Nairobi next month
Trade Cabinet Secretary Lee Kinyanjui, while acknowledging that COMESA is one of Africa’s biggest trading blocs with more than 600 million people, stated that the volume of trade within the region has not reached the expected level.
He pointed out that the persistent hurdles to seamless trade are the cumbersome customs procedures, inconsistent regulatory frameworks, and roadblocks.
Agreeing with the summit, Kinyanjui stated that Kenya will strongly advocate for the implementation of innovation and technology to overcome trade barriers.
“We must not hesitate to use digital platforms and new technologies to simplify cross-border trade and improve regional value chains,” he stated.
According to the information, the summit will be from October 8 at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC), and consequently, it will bring the region’s 21 heads of state and their senior officials together.
The issues may be covered under the discussions that are planned to go beyond the trade barriers, among which are youth unemployment, agricultural trade, and regional investment opportunities.
The Nairobi meeting is considered to be a turning point when COMESA has to acknowledge anew its leading role in steering economic integration and removing trade barriers that had kept the area under Eastern and Southern Africa mired in the low trade trap.