Women in business platform, GIZ push for more intra-EAC trade

Logistics challenges and the different tax regimes in the East African Community member states are among key issues affecting women-led businesses mainly SMEs, a lobby group now says.

This, even as progress is being made to formalise cross-border trade among small players.

It adds up to lack of access to information for a sizable number of SMEs , mainly on trade regulations.

They are also facing sexual harassment, mainly women, and lack of access to finances.

While progress has been made on bringing cross-border traders to the formal side of doing business, from informal, women and youths are still facing challenges according to the East African Women in Business Platform (EAWiBP).

The platform which has its Secretariat at the East African Community (EAC) now says women in the region need to be supported to fully tap the potential in trade and investment in the region and beyond, especially now that the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is taking shape.

The Kenyan-Tanzania borders are among those with a myriad of challenges in cross-border trade for small players.

“Kenya and Tanzania has had a lot of restrictions at the borders which have in the past frustrated cross-border trade. We still need to address these challenges, and logistic challenges such as transportation and harmonisation of standards,” said Elizabeth Thande, chairperson EAWiBP.

She spoke during an interview with the Star on the sideline of a forum on branding and packaging in Nairobi.

EAWiBP is working closely with German development agency –GIZ  to train women in the EAC member  states on trade, and equipping them with technical know-how and skills to tap business opportunities.

“We have managed to bring women in business mainly SMEs from the informal side to the formal side, enabling them to trade regionally and internationally,” Thande notes.

The trainings have also seen women come up with business plans that have increased access to financing from lending institutions.

Edda Otieno, advisor at GIZ-Business Scout for Development Programme (Kenya), noted that major challenges still remain in the social space including human rights, which she said are “overlooked”.

 The Business Scout for Development Programme is being run on behalf of the Germany Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

“Some of the labour and employment laws are being overlooked by some of the businesses and employers. There are issues of gender based violence, sexual harassment and discrimination in these businesses and cross-border trade,” Otieno said.

The Business Scouts Development project is pushing SMEs to come up with sexual harassment policies to safeguard employees in the workplace. It has worked with EAWiBP for the last three years, supported SMEs in capacity building.

Meanwhile, EAWiBP has called on SMEs to take advantage of the Simplified Trade Regime (STR) to increase their participation in cross-border trade.

The policy was launched by the East African Community (EAC) and the COMESA member states in 2010, to streamline customs procedures, reduce trade costs, and enhance the participation of small-scale traders.

The STR is a special provision aimed specifically at MSMEs who regularly transact in low value consignments.

It helps to formalise and improve the performance of MSMEs and, more importantly, enables them to benefit from the regional preferential treatment when importing or exporting goods within the region, with a cap at $2000 worth of goods.

The STR was introduced to solve problems faced by small-scale cross-border traders such as lack of knowledge and information on the benefits of trading with other member state, complex documents and complicated processes of filing the existing forms, increased clearance costs and delays in the clearing of goods and processing of tax refunds.

 “We are also trying to harmonise tariffs to allow SMEs to tap the African market under the African Continental Free Trade Area,” Thande said.