Bulawayo, Wednesday, April 27, 2022: COMESA Secretariat is participating at the 62nd Zimbabwe International Trade Fair (ZITF) which is being held in Bulawayo City from 26 – 30 April 2022.
This is part of COMESA’s outreach to raise public and stakeholder awareness on regional integration programmes and encourage them to take advantage of the opportunities that COMESA provides. It is also part of the demonstration of the COMESA programmes in Member States as provided for in the COMESA Communication Strategy.
“This trade fair presents an opportunity to showcase COMESA as an organization, its programmes, its institutions, and to address any information gaps that might be existing,” said Ms Netta Gichuki, a Trade Expert at COMESA Secretariat who is in the expo team.
The theme of the ZITF resonates with COMESA’s strategy of economic prosperity through regional integration, supporting the social economic structure of the region.
To this end, the Secretariat works in partnerships for the economic development of the region based on trade and development of the agro-industry, investment promotion, physical and digital connectivity, programmes for the inclusion of women and youths and for the sustainable use of natural resources.
According to a COMESA study conducted last year titled ‘Export Potentials of Intra-COMESA Trade’ Zimbabwe has the potential to increase intra-COMESA trade by US$ 4.1 billion.
Eleven of its export products have the highest trade potential, including tar distilled from coal, fruits of the genus capsicum, avocados, glass products, and tungsten ores and concentrates.
COMESA countries participating at the Fair include Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi and Zambia. Non-COMESA countries present are Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Mozambique, South Africa and Tanzania among others.
Zimbabwe President Emmerson Mnangagwa is expected to open the trade fair on Friday 29 April 2022.
Majority of the visitors to the COMESA stand are keen on COMESA trade facilitation programmes, information on available markets in the region, financial support to women entrepreneurs, cross border motor vehicle insurance and general information on its programmes. COMESA stand is located in Hall 4 at the ZITF.