Non-tarrif barriers still trouble EAC

A truck from Kenya crosses the Namanga border post in Tanzania recently. Tanzania is cooperating with its neighbours to construct a number of one-stop border posts to ease the handling of cargo across borders..   PHOTO | FILE 

By Peter Nyanje, The Citizen

In Summary

• Transporters have been lamenting that there are too many unnecessary roadblocks in Tanzania compared with any other EAC member state.
• They argue that unnecessary inspections by customs officials undermine the implementation of Customs Union.

Dar es Salaam. As the East African Community (EAC) holds its summit in Kampala this weekend, the heads of state are expected to discuss what hampers speedy integration.

Of course, many believe that recent developments in the region, with three of the five states forging relations at the expense of two other members will be on top of their agenda. But, there are other many underlying issues.

For example, there are non-tariff barriers, which Tanzania has been blamed for not addressing effectively. One of the problems which Tanzania has been criticised for failing to implement as per agreements in the region is that of roadblocks.

Transporters have been lamenting that there are too many unnecessary roadblocks in Tanzania compared with any other EAC member state.

A study by Twaweza, a non-government organisation, in 2010 using data from Centre for Economic Prosperity shows this.

Findings indicated that trucks travelling in Tanzania were delayed by police stops and weighbridges. This increases the cost of transport in Tanzania.

Moreover, truckers are forced to pay bribes in the stops. According to the study, the total amount paid per trip in bribes was equivalent to 4-6 litres of diesel.

This suggests that factors other than bribery are likely to be the cause of high transportation costs in Tanzania. The main issue is numerous barriers which consume more time.

Twaweza established that on average truck drivers on the main routes go to a weighbridge three times per trip and spend some 10 minutes or about 30 minutes per trip.

But in recent days it has been observed that a queue leading to the weighbridge can take trucks hours.

As a result, a trip which was to be made in one day can take up to two or three days, thus increasing the transport costs.

Despite increased intra-regional trade in recent years, non-tarrif barriers continue to pose serious setbacks to economic integration of the  bloc