Ex-German leader pushes for SMEs in East Africa

Former German President, Horst Kohler

Former German President Horst Kohler has committed to push for development of the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in East Africa, which represents almost 70 per cent of the emerging entrepreneurs in the region.

In a meeting between him and the East African Community (EAC) Secretary General Dr Richard Sezibera held over the weekend in Berlin, Germany, the former leader also pledged to mobilise investments for the region promote German SME interest and investments in EAC as well as facilitation, development and growth of EAC SMEs.

Kohler, a fervent supporter for empowering Africa’s SMEs and a firm believer in the enormous opportunities that abound the continent, lauded EAC’s integration of five nations—Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi—as a best example of easing poverty and underdevelopment in the East African countries.

Dr Sezibera called for more German SME interest and investments in EAC noting: ‘My trip here is mainly centred towards strengthening our historic economic ties…’’

The EAC Secretary General acknowledged Kohler’s role in facilitating part of the Euros 14 million grant towards the construction of the EAC Headquarters in Arusha which is expected to be formally inaugurated on 28 November, according to a press statement from the EAC Secretariat availed to the Independent East African News Agency (EANA).

Ambassador Sezibera is in Germany for the First EAC-Germany Business Forum which aims at exploring business and investment opportunities in East Africa. Present during the courtesy visit was, Ambassador Ken Nyauncho Osinde, who is the current chair of the EAC Ambassadors in Germany.

Mr Kohler, is a distinguished politician and economist. He was President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development from 1998 to 2000 and head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) from 2000 to 2004 before becoming Germany’s President (2004-2010).

He is also the brains behind the “Partnership with Africa” iniative which was launched in 2005 to enhance dialogue and encourage a genuine partnership between Africa and Germany. One element of this initiative is the exchange programme “Go Africa… Go Germany” a German-African Scholarship Exchange Programme.

The EAC was revived in 1999 with a Treaty by founding Partners Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. Rwanda and Burundi joined in 2007. The former EAC collapsed in 1977 mainly because of divergent political and economic perceptions of the Partner States.

The five EAC countries are tremendously rich in agriculture, mining, fisheries and tourism, among other resources yet the larger part of its people live on barley a dollar per day