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COMESA and COMPETE (USAID) Map out ways of Increasing Competition and Expanding Trade in Africa
The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) held a planning meeting to establish areas of co-operation with the USAID sponsored Competitiveness and Trade Expansion Programme (COMPETE) in Lusaka on 18th and 19th August.
COMPETE was formed with an ambitious agenda of increasing competitiveness and trade in Africa and it is expected to ran from 2009 to March 2013. The agenda includes a 30% increase in both value and volume of international trade and of intraregional (COMESA) trade for targeted value chains and a 20% increase in market share. COMPETE also aims at reducing by 15%, the time and cost of transporting goods through targeted points along selected transport corridors. These and several other issues are what they discussed in detail at the two-day meeting in Lusaka.
COMESA Assistant Secretary General Stephen Karangizi pointed out that COMPETE represents an implementation tool and a deliverable in that, it was born out of an earlier COMESA USAID/East Africa-funded programme called Regional Agricultural Trade Expansion Programme (RATEs).
“It is worthwhile to mention that these trade expansion programmes and others related to them are rooted in history. USAID/East Africa has invested heavily in many aspects of COMESA activities to improve the economies of the region through regional integration,” Mr Karangizi added.
USAID/East Africa was one of the first agencies to marshal a series of serious studies on the economies and trade capacities of the countries of the eastern and southern Africa in the 1990s. Recently, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton reaffirmed the US Government’s commitment to the expansion of both intra and extra African regional trade and encouraged African countries to take full advantage of the AGOA facility.
USAID East Africa Office Director Dr Candice Buzzard commended COMESA for the progress achieved so far in regional integration. She said COMESA is one of the trusted and respected regional economic blocs which the US government believes is delivering on its programmes.
Dr Buzzard reiterated the continued support of USAID to regional programmes implemented by COMESA.Her sentiments were echoed by COMPETE Chief of Party Steve Walls who added that regional prosperity can only be achieved when there is competitiveness and trade is growing.
The high cost of transport is one of the key barriers to trade on the African continent. Inefficiencies along trade and transport corridors in eastern and Central Africa hinder trade and make it a challenge for these countries to be effective players in regional trade and in the global marketplace. USAID through the COMPETE programme takes an integrated approach to addressing the issues of advancing trade and economic growth and ensuring food security in the region.
COMPETE works with regional partners such as COMESA and the East African Community (EAC) to implement innovative solutions remove red tape, raise quality and production standards and work in partnership regional trade associations and local producers so that they can be more competitive in the global marketplace.
Press Release from COMESA, www.comesa.int
