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{
    "id": 794428,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/794428/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 227,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. Onyiego",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 1417,
        "legal_name": "Silvanus Osoro Onyiego",
        "slug": "silvanus-osoro-onyiego"
    },
    "content": "The main objective of the Agreement is to create an expanded and secure market for the goods and services of state parties through adequate infrastructure and the reduction and progressive elimination of tariffs and non-tariff barriers. Hon. Deputy Speaker, these are the obligations that are imposed by the Agreement. The modalities for trade liberalisation negotiated provides for liberalisation of up to 90 per cent of total tariff lines for each member state. That is including sensitive products within a period of 13 years for least developed countries (LDCs) and 10 years for non-LDCs. What is national interest of this Agreement? The interest is the advancement of economic prosperity of Kenya and her people. One, the Agreement will lead to the creation of a wider and expanded market. Two, the Agreement will promote a cross-border investment leading to increased Kenya’s entrepreneurs to invest across Africa. You know Kenyans have a vibrant manufacturing system which will not benefit from this opportunity but its people will benefit from the creation of new employment opportunities. Three, under the Big Four Agenda the Government’s share of manufacturing to GDP is to be raised from the current nine per cent to 15 per cent by 2022. The Agreement will be important for the realisation of this objective since majority of Kenya’s exports to Africa are manufactured goods. The following are the policies and legislative considerations in the Agreement: The Agreement will be implemented in accordance with the existing domestic legislation. Kenya has enacted the Trade Remedies Law and is currently setting up the requisite institutions to operationalise trade defence instruments and measures. These measures are contained in the Agreement. They include anti-dumping and safeguards to protect infant and strategic sectors from unfair competition. The following are the financial implications of the agreement: The ministry responsible for trade will need resources for implementation of the Agreement to pay the annual subscriptions and costs of sensitisation of various stakeholders. The summary of the process leading to the adoption of the Agreement and the date of the signature is as follows: The Agreement is being fulfilled pursuant to the Abuja Treaty, 1991, the Constitutive Act of the African Union of 2000 and the Africa’s Vision 2063. The Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the AU held in January 2012 in Addis Ababa adopted a decision to establish a Continental Free Trade Area by 2017. This Agreement was thereafter signed at the Extraordinary Summit of the AU Assembly on 21st March 2018 in Kigali, Rwanda. The Tripartite Free Trade Area Agreement established among the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), the East African Community and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) begun when the Tripartite Heads of State held a meeting on 22nd October 2008 in Kampala, Uganda. They decided on expeditious moves towards establishment of the Tripartite Free Trade Area among the three Regional Economic Communities. The official launch of the Agreement took place during the second Tripartite Summit held on 12th June 2011 in Johannesburg. The conclusion of the same was done after the adoption of the main outstanding annexes which was held in July 2017 in Kampala, Uganda. The Agreement is in line with the resolution of the African Union Summit held in Banjul, Gambia in July 2006. It directed the African Union Commission and the Regional Economic Communities to harmonise and coordinate policies and programmes of Regional Economic Communities as important strategies for rationalisation and to put in place mechanisms to facilitate the process of harmonisation and coordination within and among the Regional Economic Communities. The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposes only. Acertified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}