This archive report was first published on 5 July 2020.
As the world grapples with the Covid-19 pandemic, East Africa's intra-trade has taken a significant hit, with volumes plummeting to around 40% in recent months.
According to the International Trade Centre, Kenya imported products valued at $175.9 million from Tanzania in 2018, while Rwanda imported $134.5 million worth of products from Kenya and $2 million from Tanzania.
However, these imports have drastically dropped since February, due to the pandemic's spread and subsequent border controls aimed at curbing the virus.
"Intra-trade volumes in the EAC have dropped to between 30 and 40 per cent in the past three months," said Kenneth Bagamuhunda, EAC Director General, and Customs & Trade, in a statement dated 2020-07-05.
Bagamuhunda attributed the decline to restrictions imposed on cargo trucks from the ports of Mombasa and Dar es Salaam to Malaba, Busia, Mutukula, Rusumo, and other border points within the community.
East African Community partner states have closed land borders to travellers, while allowing freight to pass under tighter controls, which sometimes permit the movement of only agricultural and food products.
Initially, all partner states suspended international flights, but Tanzania and Burundi have since reopened their airlines, with plans to reopen air travel in Kenya and Uganda by mid-July.
Informal trade, a significant share of recorded trade in the region, has also been severely impacted, with people prohibited from crossing borders, stopping the main source of income for many families.
"Even shipping has been affected. The region no longer receives imported goods due to the lockdown. The EAC has now to either manufacture what it can or do without those goods," Mr Bagamuhunda explained.
He added that he had visited all border posts over the past three months to inspect Customs operations, noting that the Rusumo border from Rwanda to Tanzania was also affected when Rwanda insisted on testing truck drivers for coronavirus.
"Malaba and Namanga borders were in a crisis. But we have since installed a testing facility even though tests results take some time leading to long queues on both sides of Kenya-Uganda and Kenya-Tanzania borders," Bagamuhunda said.
Dr Peter Mathuki, chief executive of East African Business Council, echoed Bagamuhunda's concerns, stating that the reduction of volumes across borders is by 90%.
"Before Covid-19, over 3,000 trucks used to be cleared at Namanga border. But currently only 500 trucks or less are being cleared -- a huge concern to the EAC business," Mathuki said.
