The business community in East Africa has been granted a window by the East African Legislative Assembly to give its views for consideration on a Bill that intends to ban plastic bags.

The East African Business Council had filed a petition to the regional assembly to delay enactment of the law on the ground that adequate in-country stakeholder consultations were not carried out in some of the partner states.

“This led to some of our members not being accorded the opportunity to extensively engage on the Bill,” EABC said in the petition.

The letter was considered at the EALA sittings in Kigali two weeks ago, prompting the reading of East African Community Polythene Materials Control Bill 2016 to be postponed to May.  

According to Valerie Nyirahabimana, the chairperson of the committee on agriculture, tourism and natural resources that consulted with stakeholders, Burundi, Rwanda, and Uganda supported the Bill. The Bill is now expected to sail through in May after Kenya announced a ban on plastic bags effect September. The country had previously opposed a ban for fear it would hurt its industries and lead to job losses.

READ: Manufacturers protest as Kenya bans production, use of plastic bags

Figures from the Kenyan ministry in charge of EAC Affairs indicate that Kenya alone exports polythene materials estimated to contribute close to $250 million per annum. Kenya is the 11th country to impose the ban globally, with the only other African states being Morocco and Rwanda, which imposed a ban in 2008 and 2004 respectively.

Tanzania has since last year committed to banning the use of plastic bags and had assented to the previous EAC Bill, which was withdrawn because of Kenya’s opposition.

However, EALA members are split between an immediate ban and other measures such as the introduction of a conservation levy to discourage the use of plastic bags.