Uganda seeks stronger rules to boost cross-border digital trade

KAMPALA. The government has called for stronger collaboration with the private sector to establish Africa’s Digital Single Market and enable Ugandan businesses, including small-scale and informal traders, to sell goods and services across borders.

The Minister of Trade, Industry and Cooperatives, Mr Sanjay Tanna, said improved digital trade systems would enable businesses to reach wider markets, receive payments reliably and deliver products efficiently while protecting consumers from online fraud.

“Our businesses need to reach customers beyond our borders, receive payment reliably, deliver their products efficiently and compete in a market they can trust,” Mr Tanna said yesterday at the Uganda Media Centre in Kampala.

He was addressing journalists on Thursday ahead of the annual Africa Technology and Intellectual Property Symposium, organised by KT Advocates, scheduled for October 22 and 23 at the Marriott Kampala.

Mr Tanna encouraged Ugandan businesses to embrace digital platforms to expand their customer base, saying a more integrated digital market would create opportunities for enterprises that currently operate within national boundaries.

He said stakeholders were also exploring ways to establish verification systems that would help consumers establish the credibility of online sellers and reduce fraud.

The initial focus, he said, would be on the East African Community before the initiative is expanded to the continental market.

The symposium is expected to bring together government officials, private sector players and other stakeholders to discuss the rules and systems needed to facilitate cross-border digital commerce and develop recommendations to guide government action.

The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) provides access to a market covering about 1.3 billion people, with the African Union targeting the establishment of a single African digital market by 2030.

However, businesses continue to face challenges involving cross-border payments, customs procedures, delivery systems and differing regulatory requirements, which can make online trade across national borders difficult.

Mr Kenneth Muhangi, a partner at KT Advocates and executive director of the Centre for Law, Policy and Innovation Initiative, said Africa already had regional and continental frameworks that could support an integrated digital market.

He cited the AfCFTA and existing East African Community arrangements, arguing that the priority should be to translate these commitments into practical rules that businesses can use.

“At the moment, Uganda and the rest of Africa already have the framework in place for a digital single market. What we need is political will. What we need is also the role of the private sector to be able to work with our governments to make sure that we can have trade in goods and services across borders,” Mr Muhangi said.

He said the proposed market should benefit not only established companies but also small traders and entrepreneurs who use social media platforms to advertise and sell their products.

The growing use of social commerce presents an opportunity for small businesses to reach customers beyond Uganda, but traders need clear rules on payments, delivery, consumer rights and dispute resolution to operate confidently across borders.

“How does that translate to the digital trader, what we call the social commerce player, and how will they be able to trade across borders? That is what we are working out under the single digital market,” Mr Muhangi said.

Consumer protection

Uganda already has laws governing electronic transactions and financial services, including the Electronic Transactions Act and the National Payment Systems Act. Financial sector regulators have also issued guidelines covering consumer protection.

However, the relevant provisions are spread across different laws and regulatory frameworks, potentially making it difficult for consumers and businesses to understand their rights and obligations when online transactions go wrong.

Mr Muhangi said a comprehensive consumer protection framework would help clarify how complaints arising from online purchases could be handled and where affected consumers could seek redress.

“We hope that this Consumer Protection Act will be clear also in regards to, for example, setting up a tribunal to handle disputes when it comes to online transactions,” he said.

Stakeholders are expected to use the symposium to examine how existing laws and regional commitments can be strengthened to support digital commerce, protect consumers and give businesses greater certainty when trading across borders.

For Ugandan enterprises, particularly small businesses operating through social media, the success of the proposed market will depend on whether the rules are translated into accessible systems for making payments, delivering goods and resolving disputes across national boundaries.