Stakeholders call for faster EAC integration to unlock trade and investment

Business leaders and investment experts have called for urgent reforms to remove barriers to trade and investment in East Africa.

They warn that the region risks losing billions in economic opportunities unless member states improve implementation of regional agreements.

Speaking at the CEOs–Trade & Investment Roundtable Kenya Edition on Tuesday, East African Business Council (EABC) Executive Director Ahmed Farah said the East African Community (EAC) should be viewed as a major growth frontier for Kenyan businesses.

“The East African Community is not just a neighbouring market—it is Kenya’s next growth frontier,” Farah said, noting that intra-EAC trade stood at about Sh2.55 trillion against a regional economy valued at approximately Sh46.6 trillion.

He said businesses needed a more competitive and predictable regional market, calling for the removal of non-tariff barriers, harmonisation of standards and lower logistics costs.

“Our priority must be to make the EAC a more competitive and predictable market for business. We need to remove non-tariff barriers, harmonise standards, reduce the cost of logistics and ensure that regional commitments are implemented consistently,” Farah said.

Kenya Investment Authority (KenInvest) representative John Mwendwa said Africa  attracted about Sh9.05 trillion in foreign direct investment, with East Africa receiving approximately Sh1.89 trillion, or about 21 per cent of the continent’s total.

He said investors were primarily looking for scale, predictability, skilled talent, market access and opportunities to participate in regional value chains.

Mwendwa urged EAC countries to develop deeper value chains in which member states complement rather than compete with one another by sourcing inputs across borders and concentrating production where it is most efficient.

He also called for greater digital integration and interoperability of government systems to reduce the cost and time involved in cross-border business.

Trade Catalyst Africa CEO Duncan Onyango said competitiveness went beyond producing quality goods, arguing that businesses must also be able to finance production, fulfil orders and receive payment efficiently.

“The key questions for businesses are: Can I finance it? Can I fulfil the order? Will I get paid? And can I make a profit?” Onyango said.

He identified trade corridors, SME financing and systems of trust, liquidity and investment as key priorities for regional integration.

RSM Eastern Africa Executive Chairman Ashif Kassam said the EAC already had significant economic scale, comprising eight member states and a population of more than 360 million. However, he said only about 15 per cent of total EAC trade was intra-regional.

Kassam noted that intra-regional trade grew by 28 per cent in 2025 but estimated that between 30 and 50 per cent of the region’s trade potential remained unrealised.

He cited non-tariff barriers, regulatory fragmentation, border delays, high logistics and electricity costs, fragmented digital systems and cross-border payment challenges among the major obstacles.

Kassam said the challenge was increasingly one of implementation rather than policy, urging governments to ensure existing EAC commitments translate into predictable business conditions.

East African Development Bank (EADB) Country Manager Angela Muga said the bank was committed to supporting private-sector growth through long-term financing and expertise in sectors including agriculture, manufacturing, infrastructure, renewable energy and climate-related investments.

The roundtable also announced the East Africa CEO & Investment Forum 2026, scheduled for September 17–18 in Nairobi. The forum will bring together business leaders and investors to develop partnerships, investment opportunities and practical solutions for regional economic integration.

Organisers said the forum would place the private sector at the centre of efforts to strengthen EAC trade, investment and sustainable economic growth.