EAC ministers visit Dar, Mombasa ports

Challenges :Addressing non-tarriff barriersRegional ministers and other government officials from the five member countries yesterday started a monitoring tour on Dar es Salaam and Mombasa ports.The tour is aimed at ascertaining the existing Non Tariff Barriers (NTBs) that are hampering regional traders.Yesterday, officials, including those from the EAC Secretariat, visited Tanzania’s Dar es Salaam port and are today expected to tour Mombasa port.The two ports serve all the five member states of the regional grouping through the the Northern and Central corridors. Trade and Industry Minister, Francois Kanimba, represented Rwanda.Recently, regional traders lamented the congestion at Mombasa port, blaming. it on traders who refused to clear their cargo during the December festive season because of the volatility of the shilling.The congestion at Mombasa has made countries like Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo to shift some of their imports and exports to Dar as Salaam making Kenya lose revenue.However, some traders blame the real cause of congestion at the port on Kenya Ports Authority’s inefficiency and the limited capacity to handle high cargo volume. Monique Mukaruliza, the Minister for EAC Affairs, pointed out that visiting the two ports will help the officials come up with common solutions of eliminating all the trade bottlenecks.“Traders have always complained about these two ports, especially delays of goods. Therefore after the tour, the multi-sectoral council will sit and design measures to eradicate the obstacles that affect the citizens of the region,” she said.On the current status of NTBs in the country, the minister noted that all roadblocks and other administrative barriers were removed adding that a few other technicalities would also be eliminated. Jacklyn Muganga who imports cars from Japan, welcomed the tour adding that Mombasa port has always delayed their goods causing losses to her business.“It would help if they remove these barriers, especially at Mombasa port. I import cars but getting immediate clearance from this port is always a problem.”Rwanda recently decided to use bilateral approach where government officials meet with their counterparts in the other member states and discuss the elimination of the barriers.

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EAC ministers visit Dar, Mombasa ports