EAC Trade and Investment Report 2018: Maximizing Benefits of Regional Integration.

Abstract

The Trade and Investment Report 2018 focuses on market-driven integration as the driver of economic development and growth. Trade and investment are important drivers of productivity; employment generation; and access to a range of products at low prices necessary to enhance the standard of living. The Report is aimed at showcasing progress in regional trade and investment. It shows that EAC has to focus on improvements in critical areas if the Region is to grow. This information should be of strategic importance to policy makers, scholars and the private sector. This Report is structured in three parts covering 4 chapters: Part One includes the background chapter which highlights the introduction to the EAC, analyses the macroeconomic trends and outlines key initiatives that have the potential to affect trade and investment in the Region. Part Two deals with the trade and investment outlook in the Region. Chapter 2 reviews trade among the Partner States as well as with the rest of the world. The chapter also reviews the impact of different trade promotion policies on customs revenue in the Partner States and concludes with an analysis of the challenges to trade development in the Region. Chapter 3 analyses Foreign Direct Investment inflows as well as intra-regional investment flows. The chapter concludes with an analysis of the challenges of attracting investment to the Region. Part Three is the wrap-up section while Chapter 4 draws conclusions.