Kenya

El comercio electrónico ha experimentado un rápido crecimiento en Kenya, apoyado por las leyes que regulan los servicios de tecnología de la información y las comunicaciones (TIC), las transacciones de comercio electrónico, la protección de datos y el acceso a la información. El Gobierno ha creado ventanillas únicas para la prestación de servicios públicos a los ciudadanos y para la logística comercial. El país está bien posicionado para ampliar su comercio digital con la creación de la Zona de Libre Comercio Continental Africana AfCFTA), habida cuenta de las políticas esbozadas en el Plan para la Economía Digital del Gobierno. El crecimiento del comercio digital ofrecerá nuevas oportunidades para la prestación de servicios en línea, promoverá la diversificación de las exportaciones, impulsará la eficiencia y el crecimiento en el sector manufacturero, mejorará la competencia en el sector financiero, aumentará el acceso a información relacionada con los mercados e incrementará el acceso de las microempresas y las pequeñas y medianas empresas (mipymes) a los mercados. Sin embargo, el potencial del comercio digital está limitado por la falta de acceso a servicios financieros, los bajos ingresos, una escasa cobertura de la banda ancha y de la fibra, una mala infraestructura de transporte y déficits de competencias. El marco jurídico y reglamentario de Kenya es insuficiente para ofrecer protección contra la ciberdelincuencia, garantizar la privacidad, apoyar la interoperabilidad de las plataformas móviles para la transferencia de dinero y los bancos, promover la confianza de los consumidores en las transacciones en línea, proteger la propiedad intelectual y proteger los sitios digitales de las responsabilidades derivadas de lo que publican los consumidores.

E-commerce has grown rapidly in Kenya, supported by laws governing information and communications technology (ICT) services, e-commerce transactions, data protection and access to information. The government has established one-stop shops for the provision of government services to citizens and for trade logistics. The country is well positioned to expand its digital trade with the establishment of the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), given the policies outlined in the government’s Digital Economy Blueprint. The growth of digital trade will open up new opportunities for the provision of online services, promote export diversification, boost efficiency and growth in manufacturing, improve competition in the financial sector, increase access to market-relevant information and increase market access for micro, small and mediumsized enterprises (MSMEs). However, the potential of digital trade is constrained by lack of access to financial services, low income, limited broadband and fibre coverage, inadequate transport infrastructure and skills gaps. Kenya’s legal and regulatory framework is insufficient to protect against cybercrime, ensure privacy, support the interoperability of mobile money platforms and banks, promote consumers’ trust in online transactions, protect intellectual property and protect digital sites from liability for customers’ posts.

International trade is the exchange of capital, goods and services across international borders or territories. Even though the WTO advocates trade opening, many WTO members do not liberalize every sector of the economy and, instead, maintain certain barriers to trade. Many of these barriers take the form of non-tariff barriers (NTBs), i.e. discriminatory non-tariff measures (NTMs) imposed by governments to favour domestic over foreign suppliers (Nicita and Gourdon, 2013). Barriers can also take the form of procedural obstacles, i.e. obstacles related to the process of application of an NTM rather than the measure itself.

Le commerce électronique a connu une croissance rapide au Kenya, grâce aux lois régissant les services liés aux technologies de l’information et des communications (TIC), les transactions électroniques, la protection des données et l’accès à l’information. Les pouvoirs publics ont mis en place des guichets uniques pour la fourniture de services publics aux citoyens et pour la logistique commerciale. Le pays a les moyens de développer son commerce numérique avec la création de la Zone de libre-échange continentale africaine (ZLECAf), compte tenu des politiques décrites dans le plan directeur pour l’économie numérique du gouvernement. Le développement du commerce numérique ouvrira de nouvelles possibilités pour la fourniture de services en ligne, favorisera la diversification des exportations, augmentera l’efficacité et la croissance du secteur manufacturier, renforcera la concurrence dans le secteur financier, accroîtra l’accès aux informations pertinentes sur le marché et améliorera l’accès au marché pour les micro, petites et moyennes entreprises (MPME). Cependant, le potentiel du commerce numérique est bridé par le manque d’accès aux services financiers, les faibles revenus, la couverture limitée de la large bande et de la fibre optique, l’insuffisance des infrastructures de transport et le manque de compétences. Le cadre juridique et réglementaire du Kenya est insuffisant pour assurer une protection contre la cybercriminalité, garantir le respect de la vie privé, favoriser l’interopérabilité des platesformes de transfert d’argent par téléphone mobile et des banques, accroître la confiance des consommateurs dans les transactions en ligne, protéger la propriété intellectuelle et mettre les sites numériques à l’abri de toute responsabilité pour les messages publiés par leurs utilisateurs.

It is almost axiomatic that trade policies of a country affect in one way or another many sectors of that country and those of its trading partners. In other words, the impact of trade policy quite often goes beyond the participating countries or the direct beneficiaries, be they producers or consumers. One would have thought, therefore, that in line with the principle that the governed must have a voice on matters that affect them, there would be no decision, agreement, treaty, convention or protocol on trade signed without the input of the governed. This, however, is often not the case. Thus, despite the increasing and widening of democratic space in most African countries, trade policy-making in many of these countries is still shrouded in mystery, secrecy and mainly the preserve of the executive branch of government. This situation persists even though most African governments have over the last fifteen years or so tended to embrace participatory planning, which should enlist non-state actors (NSAs) policy-making. Thus, in trade policy-making, NSAs often remain at the periphery of decision-making. One reason for this situation could be that consultation forums, where these exist, are perhaps deliberately limited in numbers and scope of action and, therefore, do not carry much weight.