The East African Business Council (EABC) and the German African Business Association have signed an agreement to collaborate on strengthening trade ties in various sectors. These include manufacturing, healthcare and pharmaceutical, energy, mobility and infrastructure and trade mission to East Africa and Germany.
The agreement signing meeting was attended by Christoph Kannengiesser, CEO of Afrika-Verein, Amb. Rtd Egon Kochanke, Senior Diplomatic Advisor of Afrika-Verein, Serge Kamuhinda, CEO of Volkswagen Rwanda, and other officials.
Speaking at the meeting, John Bosco Kalisa EABC Chairman said, “In 2020, EAC imports of goods from Germany hit USD.850million while exports to Germany hit USD.304 million, a 25% increase in comparison to 2019.”
Dr. Markus Thill, Board Member of Afrika-Verein, and President Region Africa of Bosch called for harmonized policies to support the growth of the automotive sector in the EAC. He also called for adoption of common position on Rules of Origins at the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) level.
Sarah Reynolds from Merck Group urged the EAC Partner States to forge partnerships on distribution agreements, local procurement and advance market commitments to lure investments in the vaccine industry. She explained that access to EAC Common Market of 177 million underpins the growth and sustainability of vaccine industries and investment.
Emily Waita, EABC Board Director urged for collaboration between East African and German companies on lessons and best practices on circular economy and innovative climate mitigation solutions.
John Bosco Rusagara said there is high political goodwill from the EAC Head of State to ease doing business in the region. He explained that EAC Secretariat has made remarkable progress on the admission of Democratic Republic of Congo into the EAC bloc and the EAC Common External Tariff Review process is likely finalized in the upcoming Summit of the EAC Heads of State.