Last modified: 2016-03-14 by zoltán horváth
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![[COMESA flag]](../images/i/int-comes1.gif)
image by Zoltan Horvath, 07 July 2011
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The decision to establish the Preferential Trade Area for
Eastern and Southern Africa (PTA), the forerunner to the Common Market for
Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) was taken by the relevant Ministers of
Trade, Finance and Planning at a meeting in Lusaka, Zambia in 1978. It was not
until 1981, however, that the PTA was set up with the broad aim of promoting
co-operation and development in trade, customs, monetary affairs, industry,
agriculture and communications in eastern and southern Africa. The PTA Treaty
was signed on 21 December 1981 by nine member states.
The more specific objectives of the PTA include the establishment of a common
external tariff against non-member states, the dismantling of non-tariff and
tariff barriers, and the granting of most-favoured nation status amongst member
states. The headquarters of the PTA (now COMESA) was in Bujumbura, Burundi.
In order to facilitate the intra-regional trade amongst members the PTA Clearing
House was established in 1984 and is located within the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe
in Harare and is intended to enhance co-operation in the settlement of payments
for intra-regional goods and services. The Clearing House system makes it
possible for settlement of day-to-day payments to be effected in national
currencies (as opposed to using the traditional 'hard' convertible currencies
such as the US dollar, pound sterling etc.) with net balances only being subject
to settlement in convertible currency at the end of a transaction period of two
months. The COMESA Clearing House makes use of a common unit of account, the
UAPTA (Unit of Account of the PTA), which is equivalent to the Special Drawing
Right (SDR) of the International Monetary Fund.
A Free Trade Area was achieved on 31 October 2000 when nine of the member
States, namely Djibouti, Kenya,
Madagascar, Malawi,
Mauritius, Sudan,
Zambia and Zimbabwe, eliminated their tariffs on
COMESA originating products in accordance with the tariff reduction schedule
adopted in 1992. This followed a trade liberalisation programme that commenced
in 1984 on reduction and eventual elimination of tariff and non-tariff barriers
to intra-regional trade. Burundi and
Rwanda joined the Free Trade Area on 01 January 2004. These eleven Free
Trade Area members have not only eliminated customs tariffs but are working on
the eventual elimination of quantitative restrictions and other non-tariff
barriers.
Several COMESA institutions have been created to promote sub-regional
co-operation and development. These include:
The COMESA Trade and Development Bank in Nairobi (Kenya)
The COMESA Clearing House in Harare (Zimbabwe)
The COMESA Association of Commercial Banks in Harare (Zimbabwe)
The COMESA Leather Institute in Ethiopia
The COMESA Re-Insurance Company (ZEP-RE) in Nairobi (Kenya)
In addition a Court of Justice was also established under the COMESA Treaty and
became formally operational in 1998. Further initiatives exist to promote cross
border initiatives, form a common industrial policy and introduce a monetary
harmonisation programme.
According to its website (http://www.comesa.int)
COMESA offers its members and partners a wide range of benefits which include: A
wider, harmonised and more competitive market, greater industrial productivity
and competitiveness, increased agricultural production and food security, a more
rational exploitation of natural resources, more harmonised monetary, banking
and financial policies, more reliable transport and communications
infrastructure.
The current (2007) member states of COMESA are: Angola,
Burundi, Comoros,
Democratic Republic of Congo, Djibouti,
Egypt, Ethiopia,
Eritrea, Kenya, Libya,
Madagascar, Malawi,
Mauritius, Rwanda,
Seychelles, Sudan, Swaziland,
Uganda, Zambia and
Zimbabwe. Countries which were previously members but which have withdrawn
from COMESA include Lesotho, Mozambique,
Namibia and Tanzania.
Bruce Berry, 9 February 2007
COMESA has
a new logo and
flag. It is light blue with stylized map of Africa and its abbreviation next to
it. All elements are white. The emblem is placed inside a white circle on the
flag. I have no information about the exact date of flag change. The new logo
also can be seen on its website.
Image of flag (second from left):
http://www.gcis.gov.za/images/resource_centre/multimedia_products/photo_gallery/events/zuma_comesa_eac_sadc/comesa_eau_sadc%201_l.jpg
Zoltan Horvath, 07 July 2011
![[COMESA flag]](../images/i/int-comesa.gif)
image
by Marcus Schmoeger, 8 February 2007
Since the inception of the PTA, the institution has used a map of Africa
with its member states highlighted as its logo. With the increase in
membership and the change of name on 08 December 1994, a new logo was
adopted. The logo of COMESA remains a map of Africa showing its member
countries surrounded by a thick black ring with COMESA written both at
the top and bottom. Surrounding this again is a thinner black ring.
The headquarters of COMESA are in Lusaka (Zambia) while that of the
COMESA Bank is in Bujumbura (Burundi) and the Clearing House remains in
Harare (Zimbabwe).
The logo also forms the central charge in the flag of the institution.
The flag is blue with the logo in the centre. The map of Africa is in
yellow with the member states being shown in red. The name of the
institution appears in white on the inner, thick black ring.
Bruce Berry, 9 February 2007
