There were great benefits to be had for African countries that opened up their economies for more trade among themselves, Trade and Industry Minister Alec Erwin said on Tuesday.
Speaking in Cape Town at the launch of a new brand of Ugandan coffee, he said for Africa’s economy to improve, countries had to start producing more goods and trading these within the continent.
”We can and should start trading amongst ourselves… there are great opportunities. We have to open our economies to each other, we only need to look at Europe to see the benefit of (this).”
Erwin said African countries needed to set out rules and regulations on customs clearances and visa requirements.
”It has always been bizarre that we have a sophisticated set of regulations with Europe, but we have no single recognising standard with anyone in Africa.
”The result is that it takes eight hours (for goods) to clear customs,” he said.
Speaking at the launch, Shoprite-Checkers CEO Whitey Basson also referred to delays while trading in Africa.
He said it was as if ”our previous colonial rulers left us with a nightmare of controls and regulations to prevent us from doing business with ourselves”.
Bureaucracy made it impossible to simply fly in and out of a country, and it could take up to 40 days and five different inspection agencies to deliver a consignment of goods to some countries on the continent.
”(The problem of) too much red tape and bureaucracy need to be addressed if we believe that job creation through trade is the solution,” Basson said.
Also at the event was Uganda’s Minister of Trade, Tourism, Trade and Industry, Edward Rugumayo, who said the launch of a Ugandan brand of coffee in South Africa would mean increased earnings for farmers in his country.
”Today is an eventful day for coffee farmers in Uganda; their percentage earnings shall improve,” he said. – Sapa