Kenya has asked Tanzania to abolish its new excise duties and industrial development levy, as well as laws barring foreigners, including Kenyans, from engaging in certain businesses, calling these measures 'discriminatory.' Through a strongly worded statement on Wednesday, Trade Cabinet Secretary Lee Kinyanjui said the regulations will not only hurt Kenya's economy but also that of Tanzania. ''Kenya requests that these restrictions be removed and that Tanzania reverts to measures provided for in the EAC protocol,'' the statement by CS Kinyanjui read in part. ''The Business Licensing Order, which seems to be criminalizing lawful EAC investments, will hurt both our economies.
It is therefore critical, in the spirit of EAC, that bilateral engagements be held to resolve these issues,'' the statement continued.
Trade Cabinet Secretary Lee Kinyanjui at a meeting in his office in Nairobi, February 18, 2025.
Photo Lee According to a notice released by Tanzania's Minister for Industry and Trade, Selemani Saidi Jafo, on Tuesday, the East African Country banned foreigners from conducting 15 small- and medium-sized businesses in the country.
