KIGALI, RWANDA - Rwanda manufacturers are well prepared to participate equally in the East African Community Customs Union (EACCU), saying are they are to benefit more.

 

The President of the Chamber of Rwandan Manufacturers Mr. Jacques Rusirare says in the short term, the CU opens a window of opportunities for local manufactures to import easily skilled labour from partner states and this will help boost the quality of locally produced products.

 

However, this will cease after the sector acquires its local human resource because Rwandans will have crossed the borders for knowledge in the regional academic institutions. These will therefore transfer the knowledge acquired to the local factories.  

 

“The customs union will create an opportunity for Rwandan businesses to operate in other EAC partner states because of reduced trade barriers,” Mr. Rusirare told East African Business Week in a telephone interview in Kigali earlier last week.

Whereas other partner states will be busy exporting to Rwanda, Rusirare noted that Rwandan manufacturers should satisfy local demand before rushing to the foreign markets.  

 

He said the exports market is also good for local producers but they must make sure they produce sufficient raw materials for quality export products that will strongly compete on the foreign market. 

 

“Our partner states have both quality and technical capacity to produce. Therefore, we must raise our quality standards by adding value in our products for them to compete.”

 

Rusirare noted that weak manufacturing plants might get hurt in the process but the negative impact will be minimal.

 

The Managing Director of Utexrwa, a local textile factory, Mr. Rajandran Ranganathan who doubles as a director on the board of the East African Business Council (EABC), is also optimistic about the benefits of Rwandan products in the customs union.

“If you see Rwandan manufacturers are surviving only by their strengths, products, knowhow and their way of doing business. Even before we became EAC, we were already in COMESA, and we survived,” said Rajandran.

 

 “I strongly believe in the capacity and products of the private sector in Rwanda and we will survive in the CU with our coherent capacity.”

 

He believes that the customs union is a ground for the regional manufacturers to share experience, market, technology and even consolidate strengths to enter other markets outside Africa.

 

He gave an example of AGOA (African Growth Opportunity Act) which has much potential for the regional textile products.  

 

End.