Kenya is now bound to experience faster, efficient and paperless trade and business sector, thanks to the launch of the Kenya Electronic Single Window System which will be known as the Kenya Tradenet.
Being a launch that will transform the way business is conducted in the region, the launch was led by three presidents in the East African Region; Kenya’s Uhuru Kenyatta, Rwanda’s Paul Kagame and Uganda’s Yoweri Museveni.
During the launch, President Uhuru Kenyatta said: “The realization of this important initiative will undoubtedly go a long way in transforming the way we conduct international trade transactions, not only in Kenya but also in the wider East African region”
The project was initiated by CrimsonLogic, a provider of e-Government solutions and services headquartered in Singapore under a government contract between Kenya and Singapore. The TradeNet deployment is CrimsonLogic’s eighteenthlive Trade Facilitation implementation so far, and its first major project in Kenya.
Kenya TradeNet is owned and managed by Kenya Trade Network Agency (KenTrade), and the core function of this system is to facilitate international trade by reducing delays and lowering costs associated with clearance of goods at the Kenyan borders while maintaining the requisite controls and collection of levies, fees duties and taxes, where applicable on imports or exports.
So this technology will reduce the time cargos sit at the Port of Mombasa to a maximum of three days; at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, a maximum of one day within a period of 2 years after operationalization; The border post cargo sit time will also reduce for both transits and intra-regional trade consignments to a maximum of one hour.
Based on the volume of goods imported or exported in Kenya, it is estimated that the implementation of this system will also lead to a saving of between $150 million and $250 million per annum in the first three years and between $300 million and $450 million per annum thereafter through improved services.
In addition, the Single Window platform will also enhance revenue yields, improved trader Compliance, enable use of modern dynamic “Risk Management” techniques for control and enforcement purposes as well as more effective and efficient deployment of resources; availability of trade statistics, enforcement of controls laid down by domestic policies and international agreements and improved international competitiveness of Kenya, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and trade.
President Kenyatta also pointed out that the government was also putting in place a Government payment Gateway to ensure all payments to the Government by citizens and business can be done electronically.
With Rwanda already implementing a Single Window System while similar efforts are underway in Tanzania and Uganda, President Kenyatta called upon the cabinet secretaries and ministers in charge of East African affairs to work with their national Treasury colleagues to move the region forward.
