East Africa

Region: East Africa

The population of COMESA members in 2016 was 492.5-million.

Tanzania is not a member of the East Africa’s biggest Regional Economic Community (REC), the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), but it is a member of two other blocs, the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the East African Community (EAC).

This type of overlapping membership is fairly common but can create problems if an REC concludes a deal with a foreign trading partner such as the EU. African planners are hoping that the continentwide African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) will iron out the anomalies that come with multiple membership of RECs.

The EAC comprises six states: Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Uganda and United Republic of Tanzania.

The member states of COMESA are Burundi, the Comoros, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Rwanda, Sudan, eSwatini, Seychelles, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

COMESA has several institutions which support trade and investment across the region. These include a trade and development bank, a clearing house, a leather products institute, re-insurance and monetary institutions and a trade insurance agency.

A third grouping, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), tackles drought and desertification in the Horn of Africa. The member states of IGAD are Djibouti, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Kenya, Somalia, the Sudan, South Sudan and Uganda.

Climate

East Africa has been experiencing extreme weather patterns in recent years, including droughts and storms. The high altitudes of the Ethiopian Highlands and the mountains of the lake region combine to create a cooler and drier climate than one might expect for the region’s latitude. Rather than equatorial weather, it is closer to a temperate upland climate with low temperatures. Snow occurs on the highest peaks such as Kilimanjaro.

Savanna conditions allow for the cultivation of maize, cassava, potatoes, millet, pulses, sorghum and beans. Cash crops include cashew nuts, tea, coffee, cotton, tobacco, sisal and cloves.

Economy

East Africa was the fastest-growing African region in 2018 (5.7%) and was projected to go beyond 6% in 2020. The region is Africa’s most integrated in terms of market access (African Development Bank). COMESA established a Free Trade Area in 2000, which led to an average growth in intra-regional trade of 7%.

Countries within the region have been cooperating on crossborder infrastructure and transport projects, expanding access to electricity and building capacity in renewable energy projects. The ICT sector is receiving investment.

Strong foreign direct investment is led by Chinese and Turkish involvement in Ethiopia. The diverse nature of the region’s economies makes for an attractive investment proposition. Standard Bank expects the development of the Uganda-Tanzania pipeline to attract capex of $25-billion. Tourism is a strong earner.

Resources

Nickel, uranium, copper, oil, diatomite, gold.