The Ministry of Agriculture will be no longer allowed to impose any additional duties on the exports of raw and semi-finished hides. In fact, Kenya’s Supreme Court has recently decided upon such prohibition, while granting yesterday the appeal filed by the Tannery Association against measures, formerly imposed by Ministry of Agriculture, about new duties on the exports of hides and skins. Judge John Mativo deemed such measure to be “in contrast to constitutional and legal requirements”: grounds for his decision are that new taxes may be actually imposed, but exclusively by Minister of Trade, not by Ministry of Agriculture then. In the meantime, they have reopened one of the four tanneries, which had shut down nearly one month ago while facing illegal discharge accusations. As reported by TheSauerReport, MAS Tannery got the formal authorization to start up again its plants: in fact, following an inspection carried out to assess sewage law standards compliance, National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) inspectors issued such permission.
Kenya’s court grants tanners’ appeal: “Duty is unconstitutional”
