UK Protests Ban On Second-hand Buses, Trucks By Kenya

The United Kingdom has protested Kenya’s impending ban on second-hand imports of buses and trucks, fearing the ban will cut the flow of used commercial vehicles from the European country.

Betty Maina, the Industrialization and Trade secretary, says the UK authorities are uncomfortable with the sanction on used vehicles, which was set to take effect from July 1 before it was frozen in court.

Kenya and Britain signed a fresh trade deal in December 2020 allowing duty-free access of Kenyan goods to the UK market and avoid a post-Brexit disruption.

The Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) Council is made up of ministerial representatives from both countries tasked with ensuring smooth implementation of the trade deal, which came into force in March 2021, including ironing out trade disputes.

The Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) in April issued a notice freezing importation of used vehicles more than seven metres in length from July 2022. Trucks with load capacities of 3.5 tonnes and above were also banned.

Imports of tractor heads and prime movers not older than three years were allowed access until June 2023 after which only new units were to be allowed into Kenya.

The notice was, however, suspended by Justice Oscar Angote of the Environment and Land Court in early July, pending the determination of a petition by activist Okiya Omtatah.

The UK largely manufactures Leyland trucks, but a considerable number of second-hand Ford and Fiat (of Italy) prime mover trucks and Caterpillar construction and mining equipment are shipped into Kenya from the UK.

Used commercial vehicle dealers say supply gaps in the market and inconsistent policy in the East African Community (EAC) will shift the business to neighbouring countries as local players face closure.

They reckon that countries such as Uganda continue to allow imports of used commercial vehicles, which also operate in Kenya, adding that most European models of prime movers are not assembled locally.

Ms. Maina did not give specific rules that the UK is concerned about, saying the issue was still at the technical stage and yet to be escalated to the ministerial level.

“It [EPA Council] is at a technical level. Things haven’t escalated to the ministerial level yet,” she said. “The technical groups are meeting on rules of procedure and how you will conduct yourselves.”

Kenya’s EPA Council, chaired by Ms. Maina, has Attorney-General Kihara Kariuki as well as Cabinet Secretaries for the Treasury, East African Community (EAC) and Agriculture as members.

The team, together with their UK counterparts, is responsible for the implementation as well as monitoring of the fulfilment of the objectives of the Kenya-UK trade pact.

Nairobi signed the strategic trade deal with London on behalf of the seven-nation East African Community (EAC) on December 8, 2020, before its coming into force on March 23, 2021, after ratification by respective parliaments.

The trade pact preserved duty- and quota-free access to the UK for Kenya’s largely agricultural produce such as cut flowers, coffee, tea, fruits, and vegetables after Britain left the 27-member European Union trading bloc.

The deal, however, provides a window of seven years after ratification by the Kenyan and UK parliaments for non-agricultural goods from the UK to start enjoying preferential import duty.

The tariffs on UK products such as vehicles, machinery, boilers, printed books, paper, and paperboard will gradually be phased down from the seventh to the 25th year when they will be abolished, except for sensitive imports which will continue to attract the applicable 25 percent duty.

Britain is one of Kenya’s most important trading partners, absorbing most of its tea, cut flower and fresh vegetable exports. In return, it supplies machinery, cars, pharmaceuticals, and electronics.