Kenya export earnings from Uganda up 57% on tax deal

Kenya’s earnings from exports to Uganda jumped more than half after last April’s deal which cleared tax hurdles for goods such as pharmaceuticals, confectionery, juice and spirits.

Trade data collated by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics show value of exports between April and July amounted to KShs 25.97 billion (about Shs829 billion), a 56.64 percent climb compared with average value for the same period in the previous three years.

Kenya’s Trade secretary Betty Maina early April led a Kenyan delegation to Kampala to find a long-lasting solution to the on-and-off disputes that had seen both countries impose duty and restrict importation of some goods against East African Community (EAC) Customs Union Protocol.

The Kenyan delegation, which also met President Museveni, reached a deal which saw Uganda commit to remove 13 percent duty that it had imposed on Kenya’s juices, malted beer and spirits, as well as a 12 percent verification fee on pharmaceuticals.

Kenya, on the other hand, agreed to scrap the 35 percent duty it had slapped on gas cylinders from Uganda and increase quota of sugar imports to 90,000 from 11,000 metric tonnes, among other concessions.

“There is a lot of positive vibes within EAC that’s developing and we want to ride on that as a way of bringing back EAC that used to be,” Adan Mohamed, the EAC Affairs Cabinet Secretary told the Business Daily.

“Ultimately, as government, we try and make sure that the environment is suitable for the private sector to do business.”

The exports in the review period were 63.13 percent higher than KSh15.92 billion last year when flow of goods was hit by Covid-19 protocols, according to the KNBS statistics as captured by the Kenya Revenue Authority.

The earnings were also 49.54 percent more than Sh17.36 billion in 2019 and 57.88 percent higher than Sh16.45 billion the year before.