Kenya violates COMESA free trade agreement by imposing 25% tariff on Egyptian exports

CAIRO – 13 September 2020: The Egyptian government is waiting for the Kenyan response to its query on the latter's decision to impose a 25-percent tariff on Egyptian exports in violation of the COMESA free trade agreement.

Sources told Amwal Al Ghad newspaper that the Egyptian government needs a clarification so it would put a plan to mitigate the impact of the decision on Egyptian exporters. The sources added that the tariffs have been imposed on the exports of other countries as well.

The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) free trade area was founded in 1994 and has 21 member states. Egypt signed the treaty in 1998 and started exempting fellow members from tariffs in 1999.

According to the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS), Egyptian exports to COMESA countries recorded $2.1 billion in 2019 up from $1.9 billion with an increase of 11.3 percent.

In the first half of 2020, Egyptian exports to Kenya rose by 9 percent to hit $82 million compared to 2018.

The top industrial sectors exporting to Kenya are paper, plastic, rubber, detergents, glass, ink, paints, fertilizers, solar cells, batteries, and chemicals.