East Africa inks trade deal with UN trade body

The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (Unctad) and TradeMark East Africa  (TMEA) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to boost trade in East Africa.

According to a TMEA statement, the MoU, which was signed in Geneva last Thursday, will help to boost trade in the region through collaboration, trade facilitation, including customs automation and trade portals, and by improving port infrastructure.

TMEA CEO Frank Matsaert noted that trade infrastructure was critical to East Africa's prosperity and to creating the much-needed jobs in the region. “Currently East Africa's trade corridors are characterised by long transit times and high costs. Freight costs per kilometre are more than 50% higher than in the United States and Europe, and for the landlocked countries, transport costs can be as high as 4% of the value of exports,” he said.