Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni on Friday, November 29, subtly criticised President William Ruto for several import bans imposed by Kenya on Ugandan products.
While speaking during the 24th East African Community Ordinary Summit of East African Heads of State in Arusha, Tanzania, Museveni seemingly aimed a subtle dig at Ruto over the import bans issued on milk, maize, and other agricultural products.
In his scathing analysis of the operations of the EAC region, Museveni accused countries of predatory behaviour by imposing bans on products from member states only to turn around and request more imports a year or two later. While he did not mention Kenya or President Ruto by name, his sentiments pointed to the dicey trade relationship between the two states.
“You hear people say that country X has a bumper harvest this year and will therefore not allow products from other countries to enter that market,” he claimed.
“What then happens is that producers of that product migrate to other enterprises and forget about the banned product. Two years down the line you hear that there is a shortage of the same product in country X and that they now want to import the product,” Museveni added.
“Unfortunately, you find that by that time the product is no longer being produced in the country that was blocked,” he further posited.
Museveni’s comments come in the wake of the import bans that threaten the two countries' bilateral relations. In May 2023, the Kenya Dairy Board (KDB) stopped issuing permits for Uganda milk powder product imports.
According to KTB, the move was aimed at protecting the industry from low prices and excess production. This reinstated a ban in 2021 on Ugandan milk products. Aside from affecting bilateral ties, the restrictions have affected major players, some of whom have had up to 114 permits denied by the board.
Further, in March 2021, Kenya banned maize imports from Uganda due to high levels of mycotoxins, which are known to cause cancer. Kenya later lifted the ban with strict conditions on exporters, including requiring registration and ensuring aflatoxin levels comply with maximum levels.
The Kenyan government had also banned poultry products from Uganda in 2021, but the ban was later lifted. However, Kenya reintroduced stringent measures on poultry products by reintroducing a tax levy that set a tax of Ksh72 a tray. This move reintroduced the previously existing trade wars, further straining the Kenya-Uganda economic ties.
The longest-serving East African president added that he would not be drawn to a tit-for-tat situation, terming it as a ‘historical mistake.’
“For instance, even though Uganda is producing a lot of maize, we have never banned maize products from other East African countries. We have a lot of milk products, however, we have never banned milk products from other countries,” Museveni stated.
Museveni went on a rant lecturing other EAC leaders for setting up trade bans on fellow nations in the region.
“Despite the great progress made by the EAC over the years, there are still obstacles that stunt the growth of our community. For instance, take the usual banning or unlicensing of products so that they do not enter the other member states,” he claimed.
Kenya has been Uganda’s main trading partner in the EAC region. In 2017, trade volume between the two countries surpassed a billion dollars. However, a recent report indicated that Tanzania had surpassed Kenya as Uganda's top import source.
