Parliament approves trade deal with the EU

The National Assembly on Wednesday ratified the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) aimed at enhancing trade between the East African Community and the European Union.

This move gives Kenya breathing space as it will continue to enjoy preferential rates for goods headed to the EU even as the EAC bloc continues with its negotiations.

“We will beat the October deadline and we will not be subjected to tariffs,” Industrialization Cabinet Secretary Adan Mohamed said.

Mr Mohamed was quick to affirm that the task that lies ahead is for EAC member states to sign the EPA as a bloc and enter a legally binding trade arrangement between them and the EU.

Kenya had an October 1 deadline to ensure that the comprehensive economic partnership agreement is ratified by the national assembly.

This formal consent was to ensure that Kenya continues to benefit from the duty free quota free import arrangement into the EU.

A special sitting convened by parliament saw the EPA approved , protecting local exporters from being subjected  to tariffs of up to 22 percent whenever they access the EU market.

“That duty is estimated at about Sh600 to Sh 800 million a month,” Mr Mohamed stressed.

Kenya can now comfortably await neighboring Tanzania and Uganda to sign the agreement even as the wider East African community plans to sign the EPA as a bloc by January 2017.

According to the Kenya Association of Manufacturers Chief Executive Officer Phyllis Wakiaga, the trade agreement is in the best interest of Kenya as well as the EAC.

“I want to assure you that we have ensured that we have a solid agreement that protects the local industry we’ve put in place the safeguards required to protect infant industries,” Mrs Wakiaga pointed out.

Currently 65 percent of products from the EU enter the EAC duty free.

But under EPA sensitive products like fresh produce, poultry, dairy fisheries cereals beer and paper textile and wood products from within the EAC are protected from cheaper alternatives from the EU with 35 percent of EU imports subjected to EAC duties.

“Out of that 35, 17.5 percent is the sensitive list. So we have more or less blocked that from liberalization. What’s left is intermediate and finished goods which currently attracting 10 to 25 percent duty,” Mr Mohamed said.

Kenya and Rwanda signed the EPA earlier this month in Brussels with Uganda said to be willing to sign the same while Tanzania requested for further consultations.

Additional Reporting by Noah Kuto