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Border communities ask presidents to end Kenya-Tanzania feud
Aug 13, 2020
In Summary
The two countries have recently had some misunderstanding over handling of the Covid-19 the pandemic. The residents said the duo should sort out their differences and strengthen economic and social ties.
Communities living in Vanga, Lunga Lunga, Kwale want President Uhuru Kenyatta and his Tanzanian counterpart Pombe Magufuli to end the economic cold war. The two countries have recently had some misunderstanding over handling of the Covid-19 the pandemic. According to residents, the ongoing grudge between the two countries has negatively affected trade. Led by Feroz Mohammed, the residents said the duo should sort out their differences and strengthen economic and social ties. “We want them to end their fights. Before these coronavirus restrictions businesses were doing great unlike now,” he said. Tanzania and Kenya have for years depended on each other on trade as border residents will cross over for business. There are popular open-air markets called ‘chete’ whereby businesspeople from both sides trade at cheap prices. Mohammed said the stringent Covid-19 rules for foreigners at the border have paralysed businesses, raising the prices of commodities. Vanga is known for fishing and the biggest markets are in Tanzania. The residents said they were forced to travel to Mombasa to find a market for their products, which is expensive. “Vanga to Tanga is about 60km compared to going to Mombasa which is almost 150km. That's time-wasting and consumes a lot of money, " he said. Wholesaler Hamdu Hamadi said they used to get wheat flour, rice and maize among other commodities at affordable prices from Tanzania. He said a 1kg packet of wheat flour from the neighbouring country would be sold at Sh55-60 while locally it cost Sh 70-75. Hamadi said since importation has been disrupted it is becoming almost impossible to conduct business. According to the Kenyan government, anyone traveling from foreign countries is supposed to be tested for coronavirus and observe 14 days of quarantine before being cleared. Edited by Henry Makori
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