EAC member states advised to focus on cross-border investments

ANNE ROBI

EAST African Business Council has called on Tanzania and other EAC countries to focus on cross border investments for better and quick businesses development and promotion of integration.

The Chairman the Council, Mr Felix Mosha, made the call yesterday in Dar es Salaam when opening a tentative programme for Public Private Dialogue on the Tanzania Private Sector involvement and contribution to the implementation of the EAC Common Market Protocol (CMP).

Mr Mosha said that focusing on cross borders investments was vital in the EAC common market development as it would help gather sources familiar to the EAC economic. “Tanzania and East Africa should collectively direct their focus towards cross border investments, which have so far made Kenya the third or fourth largest FDI investor in Tanzania,” he said.

Mr Mosha called on TPSF to ensure SMEs are fully informed about conditions for their effective trading opportunities within EAC. Mr Mosha said SMEs are not sufficiently informed about EAC Common market which denies opportunities in EAC. “Trade expansion in the East African integration should not be left to depend on large corporations.

From the experience of EABC, SMEs are not sufficiently informed about conditions for their effective trading opportunities within the EAC,” he said stressing the need for TPSF to put more efforts and ensure SMEs are fully involved. Meanwhile, TPSF commended the government’s effort in the elimination of non-tariff barriers in the EAC market.

TPSF Consultant Mr Salum Awadhi said a research carried out indicate that the government has reduced the NTBs from 10 to 6. He pointed out one of the areas as delay in borders where the days have been reduced from 38 to six, saying the move was recommendable and constructive to the businesses development across the borders in EAC.

Mr Awadhi pointed some of the challenges in the EAC Common market as lack of awareness where he said the report indicate that only 33 per cent of business community in Tanzania are aware of the protocol. Another challenge is access to market information where 58.8 per cent of business do not receive any kind of information including the SMEs