•The Kenya National Electronic Single Window System serves as a single-entry point for parties involved in international trade and transport logistics .
•It allows lodging of documents electronically for processing, approvals and to make payments for fees and levies due to the government.
Image: CHARLES MGHENYI
Importers and exporters in Kenya are now staring at huge losses that could run into billions, in the wake of a major system failure at the Kenya Trade Network Agency (KenTrade).
The Kenya National Electronic Single Window System (NESWS) managed by KenTrade has had downtimes since Saturday, traders now say, stalling import and export processes.
All imports and exports cargo clearance by government agencies in Kenya including payments, permit applications and approvals are processed through the National Electronic Single Window System.
NESWS is a key trade facilitation tool established under the National Electronic Single Window System Act of 2022, which also established the state agency under the National Treasury, mandated to facilitate cross-border trade.
Its system serves as a single-entry point for parties involved in international trade and transport logistics to lodge documents electronically for processing, approvals and to make payments electronically for fees and levies due to the government on goods imported or exported in the country.
The system has onboarded about 35 regulatory and permit-issuing state agencies.
Other users include insurance companies, banks, clearing agents, shipping agents and shipping companies, Container Freight Stations and cargo handling companies.
Some of the key agencies on the platform include Kenya Ports Authority, KRA, Kenya Bureau of Standards and port health.
According to the Kenya International Freight and Warehousing Association ( KIFWA), the downtime which begun on Saturday has seen over 1,000 containers remain stuck at the different ports of entry and cargo storage facilities.
“Importers are counting losses in terms of storage charges due to KenTrade continued systems downtime. The affected cargo is lying at the Port of Mombasa, Container Freight Stations (CFSs), Inland Container Depots and Airports,” Kifwa national chairman Roy Mwanthi told the Star yesterday.
Traders are also unable to lodge any import or export entries, a move that has slowed down business.
KPA allows up to four days of free storage at its facilities.
Importers and exporters then incur charges of between $35 (Sh4,702) and $90 (Sh12, 091) per day for cargo that has stayed beyond the free storage period and more than 24 days, depending on the size of the container.
Containers released by KRA and not collected after 24 hours are charged $100 (Sh 13,435) and $200 (Sh 26, 870) per day for 20ft and 40ft, respectively.
CFSs charge which recently increased are now at $400 (Sh 53, 740) and $600 (Sh80, 610) for the two container sizes, with traders having an option of up to 30 days before picking their cargoes.
At airport facilities, importers pay $0.5 (about Sh67) per tonne per hour on cargoes that have been delayed to be cleared.
“The concerned ministry must urgently intervene to avert further losses,” Mwanthi said.
Manufacturers in the country have also been affected by system failures.
According to the Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM), the downtime is causing shipment release holds.
This means that no clearance can proceed without system release.
"Importers will be forced to seek KPA) storage services at a cost, and later apply for a waiver from KPA once the system is back. However, we take note that the waiver is not automatically granted by the KPA waiver committee and hence urge KenTrade technical team to address the root cause of the system downtime as soon as possible," KAM head of policy, research and advocacy Job Wanjohi said.
Manufacturers usually have operational stock to run production for some time, but if the problem persists, then the system downtime shall have an impact on scheduled production schedules, he adds.
On Wednesday, KenTrade notified stakeholders and the public that it was experiencing “temporary technical challenges” with the National Electronic Single Window System.
“Our technical team is working to ensure the system is restored. We sincerely apologise for any inconvenience caused,” it had said in a notice.
KenTrade acting CEO David Ngarama however yesterday dismissed the alleged week-long downtime, noting the system has only had failures at specific intervals, mainly during peak business hours which cause an overload.
“Some transactions have been going through some failed but this happened when traffic picked from 9am. We are however resolving,” he told the Star on the telephone.
The Single Window System offers convenience to traders through paperless application for permits on a 24 hours-7 days a week basis and security in terms of the processes of payments for traders.
It has helped improve the business climate with the simplification of 53 trade procedures; removal of 66 requirements documents, elimination 45 steps and automation of 21 steps that were previously manual.
It has saved Kenyan traders about Sh218,611 in administrative burden cost and 93 hours on average, of waiting time on queue, at counter and in between steps, KenTrade notes.
The annual value of trade documents processed through the NESWS rose by 242 per cent from Sh221 billion in 2021/2022 to Sh756 billion in 2022/2023.
Over 4.3 million Unique Consignment References and 16,517 Shipping Line Impending Arrival Report notifications have been processed since 2014, with more than 4.5 million permits issued.
The system is said to have helped increased revenue yield by Sh3.44 billion with a reduction in cargo clearance documentation approval time from an average of 12 days in 2013 to two days, resulting in savings along the supply chain of an estimated Sh2 billion per year.