Kenya to import oil from Sudan

The Kenyan government has said that it will import oil from the Sudan under terms of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), implying that there will no import duty on the product. Both Kenya and the Sudan are member states of the COMESA, a regional group working for the removal of non-tariff barriers, obstacles and restrictions that reduce trade efficiency among its members.
In a recent parliament statement, Foreign Affairs Minister Chris Obure said having liberalized the oil industry in the country, importation of oil has become a private sector affairs, and that all oil firms are at liberty to import oil from the Sudan under the COMESA rules.

The decision was made after a meeting between Kenyan President Daniel Arap Moi and the Sudan People's Liberation Army leader John Garang. Over the past three weeks, public debate on whether Kenya should import oil from the Sudan has sparked off an uproar in the Sudanese press, raising the prospect of a trade war between the two countries.