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tralac’s Daily News selection
The selection: Monday, 22 February 2016
Profiled research report: Outlook for the EU-SADC Economic Partnership Agreement (IFPRI)
The study’s estimates find positive but very limited impacts for trade flows, GDP growth, welfare, and poverty reduction. Exports from the African countries to the EU increase more than exports from the EU to its SADC partners. Import duties placed by the SADC countries on EU imports declined very slightly; for example, the study estimates that Namibia would see a decline in import duties from 3.5% at baseline (2014) to 3.48% in 2035. The EU would also see very slight improvements in its foreign market access, as would South Africa, Namibia, Swaziland, and Lesotho. The only significant change in trade flows is estimated to be that from the EU to Mozambique and South Africa. The study estimates average protection to decline for these trade flows from 7.48% to 6.33% for Mozambique and from 5.68% to 5.17% for South Africa. Such increase in trade flows may result less from the EPA, however, than from the fact that these two countries impose more protections on goods coming from areas outside the EU and SADC. [The authors: Antoine Bouët, David Laborde Debucquet, Fousseini Traoré] [Download]
Assessment survey of trade facilitation measures: Botswana, South Africa, Zambia, Malawi, Namibia (Devex)
MSI is currently seeking candidates to serve as short term roles as local researchers/logisticians in Botswana, South Africa, Zambia, Malawi, and Namibia. MSI anticipates that one candidate per country will be recruited to support the design and implementation of two distinct but related studies: a final performance evaluation of the USAID Southern Africa Trade and Competitiveness Program (the “Southern Africa Trade Hub,” or SATH), and an assessment survey for USAID on the costs and benefits of selected trade facilitation measures in the Southern Africa Region.
Namibia's fishing industry: structure, performance, challenges, prospects for growth and diversification (AGRODEP/IFPRI)
The analysis concentrates on the marine-based fisheries and applies two analytical methods: a qualitative approach that solicits views from local fishing associations and companies and a quantitative approach that uses the decision support model to identify realistic export opportunities. The main challenges inhibiting the growth of Namibia’s fishery sector include a shortage of skilled labor, a lack of vessels, seismic impacts of oil exploration, and threats posed by proposed phosphate mining at sea. The paper also examines the government’s drive for value addition. [The authors: Blessing Chiripanhura, Mogos Teweldemedhin]
East African Business Leaders’ Summit: enhancing the role of the private sector as a driver of the EAC integration process (EABC)
As EAC business leaders, we shall take this opportunity to take stock of our performance and capitalization of the wider market presented by the EAC Integration, challenge ourselves on what we can improve and challenge policy makers on the priority issues that must be resolved to continuously improve the business environment in the region. We shall also look at the need to expeditiously implement the agreed commitments under the EAC Customs Union Protocol, EAC Common Market Protocol and currently the implementation of the East African Monetary Union to facilitate increased intra-EAC trade. Summit participants will engage in: pre-launch of the EAC Code of Conduct and Code of Ethics by the Chairman of EABC and also sign the Code; launch of the EABC Non-Tariff Barriers Report which focuses on addressing core NTBs affecting intra-EAC trade; launch of the EABC Corporate Book.
Related: EABC Summit, 28 February: draft programme, Study on opportunities for the EA private sector to invest along the Northern Corridor (EABC), Lack of consensus delaying common tax regime in EAC (The East African), USTDA: details of East African reverse trade missions
Africa Country Benchmark Report 2016 (IOA)
The ACBR draws on various reputable indices spanning a complementary array of focus areas – business, economic, political and social, as well as insights from more than 40 IOA experts across the African continent. The result is a clear view of African country performance through a comparative assessment, revealing the true country benchmarks of the continent.
A suite of postings from this weekend's 'Africa 2016: Business for Egypt, Africa and World' conference:
Keynote speech by AfDB's President Adesina (AfDB)
Africa must not fall again into the debt trap. To avoid it, there is need to urgently focus on macroeconomic stabilization and fiscal consolidation, and rapidly diversify African economies, broaden the export market destinations, and expand the export mix. And most importantly, Africa must shift its focus to domestic resource mobilization for capital formation for sustained growth. Africa must tap into and securitize remittances for development. Africans investing in Africa sends a powerful signal: remittances to Africa have risen from $11bn in 2000 to over $62bn in 2014, far exceeding Official Development Assistance inflows. Sovereign Wealth Funds assets under management in Africa have risen from $114bn in 2009 to $162bn in 2014. Pension funds currently stand at $334bn. And Africa today generates about $500bn in domestic taxes. Africa must mobilize all these domestic resources to accelerate its development - that way it can decide its own direction and pace of growth. It can develop itself with pride. [Download]
Egypt’s Sisi opens African business forum: calls for joint action (Ahram)
El-Sisi said he looks forward to the logistic and industrial zones that will be established in the Suez Canal zone, describing it as a “major and aspiring project that will contribute to pushing the African trade movement with international markets.” He expressed Egypt's anticipation to continue with the construction of the Cairo - Cape Town Highway, a road network that connects Egypt and South Africa, along with other African countries in between. "I call on my African brother leaders and our partners in development to put together the first building blocks to launch several projects and developmental initiatives in a frame that ensures a needed balance between the legitimate aspirations of the sons of the continent for a better tomorrow and the aspiration of our partners in development to incentives and rewards that open new horizons for more investments and capital flows," El-Sisi said. [Text of speech]
Ambassador Mona Omar discusses importance of Egypt's engagement with Africa (Ahram)
Without “a sustainable approach towards Africa” Omar warned, Egypt’s share of investment in and trade with Africa is bound to remain insignificant compared to the big shares going to other countries like China, Turkey, Iran and Israel. “We have to abandon the on-and-off efforts; we need to realise that our friends and brothers in Africa are sceptical about whether we seriously want to build strong ties of cooperation for the joint interests of everybody or if we are just showing interest now given that we are going through intense negotiations with Ethiopia over the issue of the Renaissance Dam,” Omar said. According to Omar, these two matters should not be made to overlap – because while the path of negotiations seems to be taking a tough curve, the avenues for economic cooperation seem endlessly open.
Egyptian businessmen criticized for neglecting African market (State Information Service)
Chairperson of the COMESA Business Council Amany Asfour criticized Egyptian businessmen for neglecting the African market - one of the largest world markets. This gave a chance for Chinese and Turkish businessmen to take the lion's share of the African market, she said in statements to MENA on Saturday on the fringe of the Business for Africa, Egypt and the World Summit currently held in Sharm El Sheikh.
Related: Egypt's GAFI is developing a work vision between the state and businessmen (Daily News), Aga Khan:'Africa’s moment has come' (Reuters), Salman: ‘Intra-African economic integration essential to speed up global growth’ (Daily News), Egypt's Central Bank signs $500mn trade facility agreement with Afreximbank (Ahram), Egypt, Ethiopia, Sudan agree on measures to strengthen trilateral ties (Ahram), Kenya, Ethiopia, South Sudan in talks over disputed land (The East African)
Gerson Lwenge: 'Nile cooperation - gateway to regional integration' (New Vision)
Among NBI’s priorities for the coming years is strengthening water resources analysis using NBI analytic tools to address key water resources management issues; strengthening commitment to an all-inclusive Nile cooperation and phased implementation of the Hydromet system, which shall cover water quantity, quality and meteorological variables with monitoring stations designed at optimal locations to enhance trans-boundary benefits. All inclusive regional cooperation, through leveraging the Nile resources to foster economic growth, has therefore become an opportunity not to be missed in the context of regional integration processes. [The author is the chairman of the Nile Council of Ministers (Nile-COM), Minister of Water and Irrigation of Tanzania]
UN panel chief, Thabo Mbeki, urges action plans to tackle illicit financial flows (UN)
African countries are not simply asking others to rectify the situation, but are firmly committed to addressing the issue from within, he said. To do that, institutional capacity must be bolstered. At an AU Summit last year, African leaders decided to prepare annual reports on implementation, he said, calling for the establishment of a coordinating mechanism between AU and ECOSOC. ECOSOC President Oh Joon said that implementing the transformative agenda for sustainable development will present formidable challenges. These challenges will be no doubt steepest for Africa, he said. “Stemming illicit financial flows from Africa is both an African and international challenge,” he said. “The call made by the High-Level Panel for engagement with partner institutions to elaborate a global governance framework to address this problem, therefore deserves our full attention.” [Global Financial Integrity statement]
Revenue mobilization and international taxation: key ingredients of 21st century economies (IMF)
New IMF research suggests that once the tax-to-GDP ratio reaches 12½ percent, real GDP per capita increases sharply. Countries should, therefore, aim to remain comfortably above this threshold – say, above 15 percent. In about half of all developing countries, tax ratios are below 15% of GDP – compared with 18% in emerging economies and 26% in advanced economies. [The author: Christine Lagarde]
Kenya: Diaspora remittances rise by Sh12bn in 2015 (Central Bank of Kenya)
South Sudan: Diagnostic trade integration study launched (UNDP)
In his presentation on the salient findings of the report, the Under Secretary of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Investment, Hon. Biel Jock, highlighted that the DTIS Action Matrix provides concrete pointers on the cross-cutting and sectoral reforms, as well as quick wins to unlock the potential of trade in the country over the next three to five years. “South Sudan has a comparative advantage in the agriculture sector and with concrete efforts on value chains, branding and packaging, agricultural and horticultural can be transformed into exportable items,” says Managing Director of Ebony Centre for Strategic Studies, Dr. Lual Deng.
OECD: Development aid revised to include some military and security activity (Thomson Reuters Foundation)
Funding towards activities aimed at preventing violent extremism can now be reported as development aid, provided they are “are led by donor countries and their primary purpose is developmental”, the Development Assistance Committee, a group that oversees what can be counted as aid, said in a statement. Activities that can now be reported as aid include education, efforts to support the rule of law and work with charities to prevent radicalisation, the 29-member group, which is part of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), said after a two-day meeting in Paris.
Japanese government interested to support regional integration agenda (Daily News)
SADC investment opportunities attracts Japanese business federation (SADC)
‘165 days left before Kariba shuts down’ (NewsDay)
TOR for a SADC Regional Common Position for CITES COP17 (SADC)
Trade ministers from G20 to boost cooperation in China (Prensa Latina)
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