Lusaka, Friday, August 16, 2019: The tripartite Regional Economic Organizations namely COMESA, the East African Community (EAC) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC), have developed a capacity building strategy to support implementation of the Tripartite Free Trade Area (TFTA) integration agenda.

The strategy aims at providing a mechanism for coordinating Tripartite capacity building initiatives, develop and promote utilisation of networks of expertise and enhance the capacity of regional training institutions to support the implementation of the Tripartite programmes.

A report prepared by the Coordinator of the Tripartite Capacity Building Programme (TCBP) at the COMESA Secretariat, Dr Seth Gor says the strategy will also provide a mechanism for monitoring and evaluation of the Tripartite Capacity building programme.

“The Strategy is premised on four pillars which include establishment of the Tripartite capacity building coordination framework, establishment of a network of expertise and capacity building institutions in the tripartite region and fostering collaboration and partnerships for the implementation of the TCB Strategy,” says the report.

Earlier this week, the Tripartite Task Force held their 36th meeting from 11 -12 August 2019, in Zanzibar, Tanzania to finalize the development of the draft Tripartite Capacity Building Strategy for the implementation of the TFTA Agreement and its Annexes.

The meeting refined the five-year TCBP work programme covering the period 2020 – 2025 taking into account ongoing programmes and activities.

The three Regional economic communities  signed the Tripartite Free Trade Area in 2015 and is pending ratification by at least 14 Member States to be implemented. So far, only five out of 29 countries have ratified the agreement.