AfricaPress-Tanzania: EAST African Business Council (EABC) is calling upon East Africa Community (EAC) partner states to prioritize the improvement of infrastructure at border posts.
The improvement, according to EABC, will facilitate seamless flow of goods and movement of persons, as cross border business rebounds.
Poor infrastructure continues to be a huge trade barrier in East Africa and a major constraint to regional integration and development.
Following a recent visit to the Busia One-Stop Border Post (OSBP), EABC noted that the OSBP is efficiently operating with only a kilometre truck traffic holding an average of 55 trucks.
EABC Chief Executive Officer Dr Peter Mathuki has thus recommended the improvement of the infrastructure at the Busia One-Stop Border Post via the construction of a four-lane road to ease cargo clearance.
Nearly 1,000 trucks were mobbing goods through the border on weekdays with the number increasing to 2,000 trucks on weekends.
“The first lane should be to transport general cargo and the second lane for passengers. The third can be for fresh produce and the fourth for hazardous products,” Dr Mathuki advised, reiterating the need for parking spaces to be built for cargo trucks near the Busia OSBP.
“Insufficient parking space for cargo trucks along the northern transport corridor trunk routes still pauses a safety challenge for the traders and border communities,” he said.
EABC also urged revenue authorities to install cargo scanners at border points to facilitate trade. The EABC is the regional apex body of private sector associations and Corporates from the six EAC partner states.
It was established in 1997 to foster the interests of the private sector in the integration process of the EAC. EABC vision is a borderless East Africa for business and investment. The primary mission is to promote sustainable private sector-driven growth in the EAC.
According to the African Development Bank (AfDB), the East African region is projected to recover 3.7 per cent in the baseline scenario and 2.8 per cent in the worst-case scenario this year, under the assumption that Covid-19 would be contained in the short-to-medium term.
In October 2020, truck traffic snarl-up to the Busia border exceeded 15 kilometres, disrupting cross-border trade and escalating the cost of doing business. This saw EABC call for mutual recognition of Covid-19 tests across the region.
