Kenyan Pres Ruto in Dar Es Salaam seeking to bolster trade ties with Tanzania

DAR ES SALAAM, Oct 10 (NNN-KBC) — Kenyan Pres William Ruto arrived in Dar es Salaam ready for scheduled talks with his Tanzanian counterpart, President Samia Suluhu Hassan on Monday.

Ruto, who has this week visited Ethiopia and Uganda, will hold discussions with Suluhu at Magogoni State House.

Deliberations between the two leaders, according to Ruto’s communication team, will revolve around trade noting that Kenya is keen to particularly “explore ways of expanding business opportunities and increasing trade volumes” with Tanzania.

“Tanzania is a strategic partner in the EAC region and has been Kenya’s second largest export destination after Uganda in East Africa,” said Statehouse via a tweet

The two neighboring countries have been collaborating on many fronts including trade, security, transport, and logistics. They remain the biggest economies in the East African region which consists of seven countries.

Earlier in the Ugandan capital KAMPALA, Ruto said the East African Community will only achieve its potential if it eliminates restrictions at the borders inhibiting free trade and the movement of citizens.

The President spoke at Kololo Ceremonial Grounds in Kampala, Uganda, during the 60th Independence Day celebrations.

According to Ruto, a borderless EAC will allow people, goods, and services to move across the region unhindered, creating opportunities, wealth, and prosperity.

The President said the region should lead the way toward the realization of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

“It is our place as leaders and citizens of the EAC region for us to work together so that we can transform our borders which today stand out as barriers and convert them to bridges so that goods, services and people can move across East Africa without any impedes,” he said.

The Head of State disclosed that he had directed the Kenyan Trade Cabinet Secretary to work with his Ugandan counterpart in facilitating Uganda to join Kenya in the Cohort of Eight African countries that have opted to trade together under the guided trade initiative of the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement.

Ruto asked members of the business community to take advantage of the protocols and platforms of the EAC and AcFTA to do business across the region.

Ruto further encouraged the region’s leadership to venture into joint projects, especially in sectors where member states have an abundance of raw material but lack the processing manpower.

He cited resources such as clinker, fertilizer, and steel as examples of EAC’s imports of items whose raw materials are readily available in the region.

Source: Nam News Network