The business community is upbeat the easing of visa rules for Kenyans by South Africa government will boost bilateral trade between the two countries.
The Kenyan National Chamber of Commerce said the deal reached on Tuesday between Interior Cabinet secretary Joseph Nkaissery and South African Home Affairs Minister Malusi Gigaba will see Kenyan investors benefit from a 10-year multiple entry visa for frequent business travellers.
The new visa regime will rekindle growth of trade flows between the two countries, which suffered a blow after South Africa introduced stringent travel measures in 2014, KNCCI chairman Kiprono Kittony said. “This will go a long way in enhancing trade between the two countries, and by extension intra-Africa trade in general. People to people contact is a crucial component in bilateral relations, and the KNCCI has offered to vet business persons eligible for this facility in order to ensure it is not abused,” Kittony said.
The value of South Africa's imports to Kenya in 2015 dropped to Sh61.31 billion last year from Sh63.89 billion in 2014, according to the Kenya Economic Survey 2016. Kenya's exports to South Africa also declined to Sh4.33 billion from Sh5.9 billion in 2014.
“These are some of the effects of the strict movement that was there in the last two years,” Kitonny said. He said he will be leading a business delegation to South Africa in July, in line with its MoU with the South Africa Chamber of Commerce and Industry, to push for more trade deals.
Areas the Kenyan business delegation targets, Kittony said, include manufacturing, tourism and real estate sectors. “In the last two years it has been difficult to move to South Africa,” he noted.
On Tuesday, the SA Department of Home Affairs announced among other things, it will also exempt visas for holders of diplomatic and official passports. It will also issue a three-year multiple entry visa for frequent travellers. The service fee for visa applications will also be cut from $71 (Sh7,156) to $49 (Sh4,938), the department said.
The DHA made the announcement as SA Minister of Home Affairs Malusi Gigaba was paying a three-day visit to Kenya. Trade between the two countries has been in favour of South Africa which exports more to Kenya.
The new development ends a two-year standoff between the two countries, which had placed stringent measures on issuance of visas, making it almost impossible for ordinary citizens of these economic powerhouses to visit each other.