Free trade zone to be set up in Mombasa by 2015

The government plans to develop a Free Trade Zone in Mombasa in the next two years, a move expected to establish the country as a regional trade power-house.

The Ministry of Industrialisation and Enterprise Development on Friday began the search for consultants to carry out a feasibility study on the Free Trade Zone (FTZ) which should be ready by the end of 2015.

“I am optimistic that this project will be up and running in less than 24 months,” said Industrialisation and Enterprise cabinet secretary, Mr Adan Mohamed.

The creation of FTZ, which is part of Vision 2030 projects, will allow goods to be landed and re-exported without the application of domestic customs regulation.

The FTZ will be benchmarked against similar projects in Dubai, China and Malaysia.

Because it will be the first of its kind in Sub-Saharan Africa, the FTZ has the potential to propel Kenya to be a hub for redistribution of goods into the region.

However, progress on the FTZ hinges on a Bill that has stalled in parliament since last year — the Special Economic Zones (SEZ) Bill.

The Bill will repeal the Export Processing Act and will make it possible for enterprises receiving preferential treatment to operate almost anywhere in the country.

The Cabinet secretary said the government is already pushing for the enactment of the SEZ Bill to be accelerated