The Comesa CET structure will commence implementation when the regional trading block enters into a customs union on 8th December 2008.
While closing the Summit meeting, President Mwai Kibaki of Kenya said the Heads of State had agreed to set a transitional period by which each country will make annual tariff adjustments towards the common external tariff rates adopted for the Comesa customs union. President Kibaki is the current chairman of the Comesa Authority of Heads of State and Government for the next one year.
At the same time, immediate former chairman President Ismail Omar Guelleh of Djibouti noted that the three-band CET provided for national policy space and flexibility on specific limited products for competitiveness and revenue consideration.
This implies that before December 2008, countries shall continue to re-align their national tariffs to converge with the three-band CET structure.
Out of the 19 Comesa member states, 13 have entered into the free-trade area (FTA) while six are expected to conform by December next year.
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Kenya Association of Manufacturers
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