Creating opportunities for women informal cross border traders in the EAC

Despite the integration of the East African countries and the coming into force of the Customs Union and Common Market Protocols, women continue to engage in informal cross border trade by largely using ungazetted border crossing routes.

 There is need therefore to identify how the provisions in the Customs Union and Common Market Protocols can be exploited in order to increase women’s trade volume, reduce transaction costs and eliminate the non-tariff barriers which remain obstacles to trade.

EASSI with financial support from Trade Mark East Africa (TMEA) is implementing the Empowering Women Informal Cross Border Traders Project in the East Africa Common Market. EASSI will be implementing the project in partnership with its focal points in Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi.

On Friday 3rd August 2012, the implementing partner organisations gathered at the EASSI secretariat in Kampala, Uganda to reflect more about the project and the impact of the Customs Union and Common Market Protocols on women’s effective participation in cross border trade within the EAC region.

The participants were invited from the following  implementing partner organisations;  Tanzania Media Women’s Association (TAMWA) in Tanzania, Collectif Des Associctions et ONGS Feminines du Burundi (CAFOB) in Burundi, Caucus for Women’s Leadership (CWL) in Kenya, Profemme/Twese hamwe in Rwanda and National Association of Women Organizations in Uganda (NAWOU) in Uganda.

The objective of the inception meeting was also to enable implementing partners of the project to have a common understanding of the project, implementation mechanisms and the role each partner. Participants during the workshop reflected on the status of the implementation of Customs and Common Market protocols and impact on women’s effective participation in cross border trade with in the EAC region.

“Women have not fully benefited from the Customs Union and the Common Market Protocol largely because they lack knowledge of their rights and entitlements; they lack business information and have limited knowledge on trade procedures and protocols” noted Eric Tumesigye,  EASSI's Project Coordinator speaking at the meeting.

“We hope by the end of this project, women will have access to more markets, access better networks and add value to their products and may be cease to be informal women cross border traders” The Programs Director EASSI, Christine Nankubuge noted.

The implementing partners pledged to support the project and ensure more women informal traders benefit from the project through; increasing networking opportunities for the women; proper documentation; increased sensitization; increased utilization of the media including community radio stations and so on.

For details about this project go to http://eassi.org/projects/on-going-projects/269-gender-and-trade