A Single African Market Agenda Africa is still coming to terms with the promise of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) to create a single continental market with a population of 1.3 billion people and a combined GDP of …
The De-Dollarization of Africa The recent decision by the Central Bank of Kenya to join the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) marks a significant milestone in the country’s pursuit of enhancing cross-border trade within the African continent. The membership …
Poverty and Income Dynamics While Kenya has the lowest economic inequality among its East African community neighbors, with 38.9 on the Gini Coefficient, Rwanda (43.7) Uganda (42.7), Tanzania (40.5), and Burundi (40.1), rising food and energy prices are likely to …
Louder Drums of War While the impending war in the Gaza Strip fueled by the long-standing conflict between Palestine and Israel is bound to shift the global attention from Kyiv and Moscow, the two illustrate the rising risk of geopolitical …
The Promise of Supranational Entities In a recent interview, Andrew Dabalen, the chief economist for Africa at the World Bank, claimed that African governments must give up some sovereignty to make the AfCFTA work. The AfCFTA is a monumental trade …
Linking Financial Resources to Investment Trade between Kenya and Tanzania, the two most significant markets within the East African community, has often been characterized by sabotage and trade wars that derail business activity and progress for their citizens. This signifies …
Not-so-neighborly Relations A recent article expressed fears over the continued sabotage of economic activity between Kenya and Tanzania, East African Communities’ two major states as a pretext for a blurred future in the region’s trade and economic integration. Rightly so, …
Operationalizing a Financing Opportunity Recently, I wrote on the need for the swift operationalization of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) adjustment fund and what it means for the African continent in transitioning into a common single market era. …
Shared Interests In a recent article, the ‘Pamoja Bid’ was hailed as a possible source of enhanced cross-border integration and cross-border trade beyond the three countries joint in the bid. In a remarkable display of unity and ambition, Kenya, Tanzania, …
Gaps and Opportunities Informal cross-border trade (ICBT) represents a crucial and necessary phenomenon in districts near borders such as between Kenya and Uganda, Tanzania and Uganda, and South Sudan and Kenya. So common is the practice that it is suggested …