By Kingsley Jassi:
Malawi is in process to establish a simplified trade regime (STR) with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) which has already shown high prospects as a significant importer of Malawi’s goods.
According to Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Christina Zakeyu, Malawi already sent some documents to DRC, kick-starting negotiations to agree on the terms of trading under the proposed STR under the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (Comesa) trade protocol.
“We already sent them the documents for their review and we are expecting the response. So, the process has already started,” Zakeyu said.
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The Industry and Trade Ministry officials recently appeared before the Parliamentary Committee on International Relations where, issues of international trade agreements took centre stage as to why the country is performing poorly under these agreements.
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In reaction to the development, Cross Border Traders Association Chairperson, Steve Yohane said in an interview that this could unlock the trade potential between the two countries, which are already trading but largely through informal channels.
“If you go to Kasumbalesa (a border town between Zambia and DRC) you will find a lot of fish, beans and many other commodities that can be traced back to Malawi but traders use uncharted routes because it is difficult to trade through formal channels without a bilateral trade agreement between the two countries,” Yohane said.
The STR identifies specific products that are traded under simplified conditions like tax exemptions and shortened custom processes, reducing the cost and time in trading.
However, some experts have recently urged the government to focus on the regional market under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) which offers a huge simplified trade opportunity as efforts continue to be made to increase intra Africa trade.
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Malawi’s exports to Congo were $2.38 million in 2023, according to the United Nations Comtrade database on international trade.
Exports to the sub- Saharan largest country by size mainly include unprocessed agricultural produce. However, according to the ministry, most of the trading between the two countries happens informally and unaccounted for.
In October, Malawi and DRC signed a Bilateral Air Service Agreement (Basa) which will enable national airlines for the two countries to directly fly into each other’s country and operate air services within the agreed protocols.
Among other agreements in the Basa, Malawian Airlines will be able to fly directly to DRC and operate between Kinshasa and Lubambashi and similarly the Congo Airlines will be able to fly directly to Lilongwe and operate between Lilongwe and Blantyre.
