ITC-PSF
and EABC kicks-off national workshop in Rwanda on trade facilitation for Rwandese
business associations and traders
Rwanda workshop to boost knowledge, skills
on the World Trade Organization’s Trade Facilitation Agreement
24th
July 2019: (Kigali, Rwanda)
– The International Trade Centre in partnership with the East African Business
Council and the Private Sector Federation Rwanda (PSF-R) are carrying out a workshop for trade practitioners in
Rwanda on the World Trade Organization’s Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA).
Organized as part of the European Union-East African Community Market Access
Programme (MARKUP), the event will take place in Kigali, Rwanda.
After successfully holding similar national event in Dar es Salaam, Nairobi,
Kampala and Bujumbura the TFA national
event in Kigali - aims to equip Rwandans and, more broadly, East African local
business-support associations and traders, with a comprehensive knowledge of
the TFA with a view to identify obstacles to cross-border and advocate for
their removal.
The training has been developed in
response to persistent delays and red tape hampering the movement of goods
across borders in East Africa. Among the members of the East African Community
(EAC), inefficient trade procedures and non-tariff barriers represent an
obstacle to expanded intra-regional trade and deepened regional integration. Trade
facilitation – the simplification, modernization and harmonization of export
and import processes – has thus become a key issue for the global trade system
and for regional economic communities, such as the EAC, to create new
opportunities for businesses that are operating in regional and international
markets.
With provisions to speed up the movement,
release and clearance of goods, the WTO TFA – which entered into force in
February 2017 – represents a viable option to resolve cross-border trade
inefficiencies.
As a result of this regional MARKUP initiative,
project stakeholders will achieve greater sensitization on the need to simplify
cross-border trade procedures and to ensure greater inclusion of the private
sector in public-private dialogue platforms responsible for the implementation
of the TFA at the national level.
This capacity-building initiative is an
extension of the efforts undertaken since the entry into force in 2017 of the TFA,
and is part of a collaboration between EABC in partnership with PSF-R, the EAC
Secretariat and ITC through the financial contribution of the European Union.
[Members of the media wishing to attend the
workshop or speak to representatives of the International Trade Centre or the
East African Business Council are requested to use the contact information
below.]
Note to editors
About the
International Trade Centre (ITC) – The International Trade Centre
(ITC) is the joint agency of the World Trade Organization and the United
Nations based in Geneva, Switzerland. ITC helps small and medium-sized enterprises
(SMEs) in developing and transition countries to connect and become more
competitive in global markets, contributing to the sustainable economic development
in the Aid for Trade agenda and to the Sustainable Development Goals of the United
Nations.
About the
East African Business Council (EABC) – The East African Business Council (EABC) is the regional apex body of
private sector associations and corporates in East Africa with a single purpose
of driving the East African Community (EAC) integration process through trade
and investment. To achieve this EABC works with the public sector, EAC
institutions, the academia and the business community to unlock the economic
potential through increased access to markets, enhanced trade environment and
improved business competitiveness.
For more information, please visit: http://eabc-online.com
About EU-EAC
Market Access Upgrade Programme (MARKUP) – The EU-EAC Market
Access Upgrade Programme (MARKUP) is a four-year regional development
initiative that aims to contribute to the economic growth of the EAC region. The
programme assists small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Burundi, Kenya,
Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda by targeting specific agricultural commodities.
More specifically, it aims to support increased exports of agribusiness and
horticultural products, promote regional integration and enhance the
participation of SMEs in intra-regional trade and exports to the European
market. MARKUP is funded under the 11th European Development Fund
and is implemented by ITC, the United Nations Organization for
Industrial Development and the Gesellschaft für
Internationale Zusammenarbeit and other national
partners.
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Contact:
International Trade Centre
Victoria Tuomisto
Associate Expert for Trade Facilitation
T: +41227300337
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East African
Business Council
Adrian Njau
Trade & Policy Advisor
T: +255272520162
E: anjau@eabc-online.com
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