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  • Trade Agreements

Quick information guide

Uganda's trade policies and agreements

National frameworks

  • The National Export Strategy
  • Buy Uganda Build Uganda (BUBU)
  • The Ugandan Vision 2025
  • The National Gender Policy 1997
  • The National Women Council

Regional trade agreements

  • East African Community (EAC)
  • Common Market for East and Central Africa (COMESA)
  • COMESA-EAC-SADC Tripartite

Global trade arrangements

  • Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AFCFTA)
  • African Growth Opportunities Act (AGOA)
  • Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA)
  • Everything But Arms (EBA)
  • World Trade Organisation (WTO) Services Waiver
  • The China Africa Free Trade Agreement
  • India Africa Free Trade Agreement (IAFTA)

Contacts:

Ministry of Trade, Industry & Cooperatives
Plot 6/8, Parliamentary Avenue
P.O. Box 7103 Kampala,
Telephone: +256-312 324 000 +256 312 324 268
Email: mintrade@mtic.go.ug

 

Trade Agreements in Uganda

Uganda has developed various national policies and frameworks and signed a number of regional and international trade agreements that have secured market access for her products and services.

Through bilateral, multilateral, regional and preferential trading agreements, the Government aims at ensuring easier access to international markets for Ugandan products, and to encourage foreign direct investment.
angle-left Global trade arrangements

Global trade arrangements

  1. Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AFCFTA)
    On November 28, 2018, Uganda formally ratified the agreement establishing the Africa continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). The AfCFTA is the second largest trade area (after the WTO) in terms of member countries.

    Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AFCFTA) covers an area worth over US$3 trillion in GDP and eliminates tariffs on 90% of goods traded across the continent. Over 1.2 billion Africans are estimated to be impacted by the agreement. Benefits to African countries including Uganda, expect to come via; increased market for agricultural and manufactured products and economies of scale, increased competitiveness which could improve firm efficiency, access to more employment opportunities as trade barriers to goods and services are lessened, and technology transfer through constant trade interactions.

 

  1. African Growth Opportunities Act (AGOA)
    The AGOA trade agreement provides for duty-free treatment for about 6500 goods from eligible sub-Saharan African countries imported into the United States. Eligible products under AGOA include agricultural products, forest products, textiles and apparel, footwear, and minerals and metals. Find out more about AGOA.

 

  1. Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA)
    The Economic Partnership Agreement with the European Union (EU) establishes a free-trade agreement between the EU and developing economies in sub-Saharan Africa

 

  1. Everything But Arms (EBA)
    Tailor-made to the specific needs of least developed countries, the EU’s “Everything But Arms” arrangement (EBA) was born in 2001 to give all Least Developed Countries full duty-free and quota-free access to the EU for all their exports with the exception of arms and armaments.

    Uganda benefits from an EU initiative called the Generalized Scheme of Preferences (GSP). Specifically, the country falls under the GSP arrangement known as "Everything But Arms", which grants duty-free access to imports of all products from Least Developed Countries – except weapons and ammunition. Currently, Burundi, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda are beneficiaries of the of the EBA arrangement. Kenya’s successful move up the development ladder, the nation is no longer considered ‘least developed’ by the UN, thus, EBA preferences are no longer required.
    Find out more about EBA

 

  1. World Trade Organisation (WTO) Services Waiver
    The services waiver agreement by the WTO is granted to the Least Developed Countries (LDC) group. The waiver offers an opportunity for services and service providers from Uganda, such as professionals, to access markets in the developed countries without difficulty.

 

  1. The China Africa Free Trade Agreement
    This agreement provides a window for Ugandans to export to China. It also has double tax treaties with a number of African nations: Algeria, Botswana, Egypt, Ethiopia, Mauritius, Nigeria, Uganda, Seychelles, South Africa, Sudan, Tunisia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

    The double taxation treaty rules state that: Certain taxes like corporate income tax, withholding tax, individual income tax and dividend tax are not subject to double taxation.

    Companies in one jurisdiction are protected from being applied to discriminatory taxes in another region. The double taxation rules are in comply with the OECD’s exchange of information provisions. Currently Uganda’s exports to China are valued at US$ 57.7 million with raw hides and skins, and oil seed as the major exports. Our imports from China are valued at US$ 875 million which presents a huge trade deficit.

 

  1. India Africa Free Trade Agreement (IAFTA)
    Uganda is a beneficiary of Duty Free Tariff Preference (DFTP) Scheme of India for Least Developed Countries. Major items of Indian exports to Uganda include pharmaceutical products, vehicles, plastic, paper and paperboard, organic chemicals.

    Major commodities of imports from Uganda to India are edible vegetables and certain roots and tubers, coffee, tea, mate and spices, wood and articles of wood, wood charcoal, cotton, essential oils, and cocoa and cocoa preparation. Regular engagement between the private sectors in India and Uganda has deepened the involvement of Indian businesses in Uganda
    Find out more about the IAFTA.