AU said underdevelopment of infrastructure of land and railway transport, high cost of transport and the bureaucratic red tape are among the major factors hampering internal trade within the continent.
The remarks were made by Ramtane Lamamra, the AU commissioner for Peace and Security at the 2nd Conference of African Ministers in charge of border issues at the UN-Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) conference center in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Lamamra said waiting period at the border is one of the obstacles to the internal trade. He said it is calculated on the basis of the number of customs documents multiplied by the number of signatures required and the time of crossing the border posts.
According to the commissioner, it takes 35 days for exportation in Africa and 41 days for importation (against 10 days on the average in the developed countries).
Therefore, Lamamra said a national and regional policy for the improvement of border regimes is crucial to reduce the waiting period and an increase in the trade flow. He noted the need to build capacities in individual member states and border-sharing countries in improving infrastructure facilities.
Source: Allafrica News
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