Provisional
imports data from Kenya Trade Network Agency (KenTrade), the parastatal
which manages imports system, shows value of goods ordered from
Coronavirus-ravaged China in January and February this year plunged36.63
percent compared with a similar period in 2019.
Cargo,
largely through the port of Mombasa and Jomo Kenyatta International
Airport (JKIA), which originated from China in the review period dropped
to Sh101.46 billion from Sh160.102 billion a year ago. Kenya is a
regional transportation hub, serving in part as an entry point for
imports into regional land-locked countries such as Uganda, Rwanda,
South Sudan, Burundi and DRC.
Beijing responded to the
outbreak of the deadly COVID-19 — the disease caused by coronavirus
infection — by temporary closure of business to manage the spread of the
epidemic that still does not have a known vaccine. The lockdown, which
has seen nearly 60 million quarantined or restricted for travel, has
resulted in global disruption in supply of key household goods given
that China has remained the leading global manufacturing hub for about
30 years.
A significant percentage of goods on the
shelves of retail stores in Kenya are shipped in from China and other
Far East countries, and a dry -up of stocks could hit consumer hardest
through increased costs.
From electronics such as mobile phones and television sets and
their accessories, to utensils, furniture, electrical appliances,
clothes and prefabricated buildings — not to mention capital-intensive
ones such as heavy machinery — Kenya is hugely reliant on China for
basic household supplies.
The Kenya Private Sector
Alliance (Kepsa) said Friday the epidemic will hit big and small
business alike, dealing a heavy blow to Kenya’s economy.
“We
will work with the government on economic mitigation actions during
this season,” Kepsa chief executive Carole Kariuki said. “Some of our
private sector players with a critical reliance on imports from some of
the affected regions are activating other supply chains and sourcing
options to mitigate imminent disruptions before global trade settles
back to normality.”
China is Kenya’s single largest
source market, accounting for about a fifth of Kenya’s annual total
imports. Chinese imports to Kenya in the January-November 2019 period
amounted to Sh324.90 billion, or 20.3 percent of Sh1.6 trillion import
bill, slightly reduced from Sh346.87 billion a year earlier on reduced
imports of machinery into standard gauge railway (SGR).
No comments :
Post a Comment