Category: News

COMESA Kicks-off Business Process Re-engineering

COMESA has begun the process of re-engineering its business processes. Its objective is to redesign and modernize all the business processes at the Secretariat. The aim is to raise the business efficiency and effectiveness at all levels across the organization to enable optimal service delivery. The exercise begun last week led by the African Capacity…
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COMESA Committee of Elders Meet to Review the Impact of COVID-19

COMESA will continue using eminent personalities from the region in addressing conflicts and entrenching good governance. Speaking when she addressed members of the COMESA Committee of Elders, Secretary General Chileshe Kapwepwe said the economic potential in the region can only be harnessed in an environment of peace and stability, hence the important role of the…
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15 Member States Ready to Pilot the COMESA Electronic Certificate of Origin

Fifteen COMESA Member States are ready to  start piloting the COMESA Electronic Certificate of Origin (eCO) System. The eCO is one of the latest tools developed under the COMESA Digital Free Trade Area (DFTA) initiative. Burundi, DR Congo, Egypt, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Rwanda, Seychelles, Sudan, Tunisia, Zambia and Zimbabwe have indicated their…
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Quest for Extension of Project to Support Small-Scale Cross Border Trade in the Great Lakes

COMESA has engaged with the World Bank to extend the duration of the implementation period of the Great Lakes Trade Facilitation Project (GLTFP) by one year. The no-cost extension is expected to make up for lost  implementation time during the Covid-19 restrictions on movement. The four-year GLTFP is poised to end in December this year…
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Region Expected to Grow at 0.6% in 2020

The COMESA regional economy is projected to grow at a paltry 0.6% this year down from 5.2% recorded in 2019 and 6.0% in 2018. The slight dip in 2019 was attributed to lower commodity prices while the expected slump in 2020 will result from the devastating impact of the Covid-19 pandemic suggesting a deeper economic…
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Supporting Cross Border Trade with Masks

Cross Border Traders Association officials at Livingstone town in Zambia, receives a consignment of 1,250 face masks sent  by the COMESA Secretariat to support cross border trade. This was part of a 5,000 consignment of masks donated by the International Centre for Small Hydropower (ICSHP) based in China. COMESA and ICSHP have a collaborating framework…
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Tribute to the Late President Pierre Nkurunziza of Burundi

On behalf of the Authority of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), I would like to express my profound sadness and sincere condolences to the family, the Government, and the People of Burundi, following the sudden demise of His Excellency President Pierre Nkurunziza. The late President was a member of the COMESA…
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Ethiopia is Trailblazing in Climate-Resilient Green Economy

Ethiopia has inarguably taken the lead in the implementation of Climate-Resilient Green Economy to protect itself from the adverse effects of climate change with significant resources being deployed towards reducing Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions. The key success stories are in afforestation and land rehabilitation; generation and distribution of electricity from clean and renewable sources and…
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Rwanda, Uganda Record Reduced Trade Flows

Rwanda and Uganda have recorded a reduction in trade flows in April and May 2020, according to the latest report from the COMESA Statistics on ‘COVID 19 Impact on Trade’. The report was prepared in the first two months in which COVID-19 spread to the region. Imports into Rwanda declined by 32 % in April…
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Guidelines on Free Movement of People and Goods Published

COMESA has published and gazetted the regional guidelines on the movement of goods and services across the region. This heralds the beginning of the implementation of the guidelines across the 21 member States. The guidelines were endorsed three weeks ago by the COMESA Ministers responsible for regional trade. Regional trade has consistently faced difficulties as…
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