East Africa’s export recovery is no longer relying only on traditional trading partners like China and the Gulf countries, but new markets such as Indonesia, Italy, and Greece which are now buying more goods from the region.
According to the East African Community’s latest statistics, China, the United Arab Emirates, and South Africa are still the biggest buyers. However, much of the export growth recorded in the third quarter of 2025 came from smaller but fast-growing markets in Asia and Europe.
In the three months to September, total exports from the eight EAC countries rose by 32.3 percent to reach $19.6 billion. This growth was faster than the rise in imports and helped reduce the region’s trade deficit to $1.0 billion, down from $3.4 billion a year earlier.
The top five export destinations; China, the UAE, South Africa, Hong Kong, and Singapore took 58 percent of all exports, up from 42.7 percent the previous year. This shows that while exports are growing, they are still heavily concentrated in a few markets, which poses a risk to the region.
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At the same time, exports to Indonesia increased sharply, pushing the country into the EAC’s top ten buyers for the first time.
Italy and Greece also increased their purchases, reflecting growing demand in Europe for East African goods.
Much of this export growth came from base metals, precious stones and metals, mineral fuels, and traditional farm products such as coffee and tea. European demand focused more on minerals and processed agricultural goods, while Asian countries mainly bought industrial and energy-related products.
Despite these gains, East Africa still mainly exports raw and semi-processed goods. This makes the region vulnerable to price changes and shifts in global demand.
The EAC has stepped up trade engagement with Asian and European countries while also strengthening trade within Africa under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCTA).
Intra-African trade rose to $10.1 billion, accounting for 32.2 percent of total trade during the quarter.
Although China and the Gulf will remain important markets for East Africa, the rise of Indonesia, Italy, and Greece shows that export demand is slowly spreading to new destinations.
