The government is set to import 580,000 metric tonnes of basic commodities duty-free in a bid to lower prices and ease the high cost of living.
The Customs and Border Control Department of the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) has directed the state-owned Kenya National Trading Corporation (KNTC) to apply to be issued with a duty exemption code to allow it to clear the goods.
KNTC was in November last year given Cabinet approval to spearhead the government’s initiatives to stabilise the cost of essential goods amid a biting drought that has curtailed local food production.
To carry out its new mandate, the agency was handed approval to import 150,000 tonnes of rice, 125,000 tonnes of cooking oil, 2000,000 tonnes of sugar, 25,000 tonnes of wheat and 80,000 tonnes of beans duty-free.
The Cabinet also approved the importation of a further 25,000 tonnes of wheat donated by Ukraine. The approval is effective for one year from January 20, 2023, to January 19, next year.
This will add to the duty-free imports of maize and rice that the government has allowed private importers to ship into the country for a period of six months to ease the food shortage.
The National Treasury this year allowed traders to import up to 900,000 tonnes of duty-free white maize and 600,000 of duty-free milled rice from the beginning of February to August 6 to boost the food supply in the country.
“Only the five listed products and donations qualify for duty-free importation. Any other product outside the approved list shall be dutiable at the applicable EAC-CET rates.Once the quota is exhausted, any further importation by KNTC of the listed products shall revert to the payment of duty at the EAC-CET rates unless otherwise approved by the National Treasury,” said KRA.
However, manufacturers have opposed duty-free imports, arguing that it will lead to unfair competition and loss of market for them.
Read also; Kenya Set Import 1.5 million Metric Tons of Duty-Free Maize and Rice.
