Kenya exports rev up amid integration calls
By Xinhua News Agency, July 19, 2023Kenya’s exports to other African countries hit a record high of Sh167 billion (about $1.18 billion) in the first five months of 2023, compared with 960 million dollars in the same period of 2022, according to new data released by the Central Bank.
The bank attributed the export increase to the government’s efforts to enhance bilateral ties and trade among nations in the continent. During the January-May period this year, Kenya exported goods worth $367 million to Uganda, $169 million to Tanzania, and $120 million to Rwanda, said the bank.
Kenya also shipped goods worth $78 million to Egypt, and $64 million to Somalia during the period.
In the last month, Kenyan President William Ruto has held talks with leaders from other African countries to strengthen bilateral ties, including the Comoros, Djibouti, South Africa, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Central Africa Republic, Egypt, Eritrea and Tanzania.
During a meeting in May held in Nairobi, Ruto announced the removal of visa requirements for Africans traveling to Kenya for business as a step to boost intra-Africa trade.
The bank notes in 2022, Kenya’s exports to African nations stood at $2.6 billion, up from $2.2 billion in 2021. Kenya mainly exports coffee, fuel, tea, animals, cooking oil, and manufactured goods to other African countries.
This comes even as Kenya seems to have irked her East Africa Community (EAC ) member states by inking a bilateral deal with the European Union (EU).
Kenya exports rev up amid integration callsWhile the other countries seem to be silent about the deal, which is among the most comprehensive agreement that Kenya has ever negotiated with the EU, experts will be keenly following this development.