NAIROBI, May 9 (Xinhua) -- Small-scale traders and border communities in Africa must be involved in the formulation of regional common markets in order to help them benefit fully from regional integration, a top UN trade official said in Nairobi on Wednesday.
Mukhisa Kituyi, the Secretary General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), gave an example of East Africa common market where during its formation, traders in the negotiations were usually drawn from large businesses.
"Border communities for instance are always accused of smuggling. A small-scale trader crossing the border point with goods is likely to be harassed unlike those crossing with huge trucks carrying goods," he said.
Kituyi said across Africa's border points, small-scale traders are always discriminated because they are seen as smugglers yet supporting them to do cross-border trader will increase the benefits of regional integration.
Kituyi spoke during the launch of new research and analysis on the role of women in cross-border trade, titled "East African Community Regional Integration: Trade and Gender Implications" undertaken by TradeMark East Africa, a trade promotion agency.
"This new analysis is another UNCTAD contribution to the debate on how we, together, can make trade policy more gender-sensitive, and pave the way for more inclusive prosperity that leaves no one behind," he said.
The report looks at gender and trade issues in five East Africa Community countries to assess the impact of regional integration on women's employment and quality of life.
Its key message is the importance of putting in place policies to address gender inequalities and ensure that women fully benefit from international trade.
"Gender equality is not a natural outcome of the development process and there is a need to proactively promote gender equality policies," said Kituyi.
Among the key recommendations are closing the gender gap in secondary and tertiary education and putting in place skill development programs to enable women to match what is needed to work in higher-value-added sectors.
The report recommends that a regional credit mechanism could be established to support women entrepreneurs across EAC countries.
