eBusiness Weekly
Sydney Kawadza
A high – powered delegation including four Government departments, 25 private companies, several parastatals and business support organisations – is set to attend the inaugural Intra-African Trade Fair in Cairo, Egypt as Zimbabwe pushes to boost Foreign Direct Investment into the country. The IATF 2018, running from December 11 to 17, is the first large-scale event to promote an increase in trade between African nations as per the single – African market concept detailed in the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA).The AfCFTA was signed by 49 African states in Kigali, Rwanda in March 2018.
IATF 2018 is being organised by Afreximbank in partnership with the AU and will be hosted by Egypt’s Export Development Authority.
Composition of Zimbabwe delegation
The Zimbabwean delegation is expected to be led by Industry and Commerce Minister Nqobizitha Malanganiso Ndlovu and includes Special Advisor to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Ambassador Stuart Comberbach.
The Office of the Presidencnt and Cabinet and the Ministry of Environment, Tourism and Hospitality Industry will also be represented at the fair.
Officials from the ZimTrade, Zimbabwe Tourism Authority, Zimbabwe Special Economic Zones Authority and Zimbabwe Investment and Development Agency are part of the delegation.
Business Support Organisations would be represented by the Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries and the Zimbabwe Agricultural Show Society.
Exhibitors at the fair will be led by the Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce, Chamber of Mines, Zimbabwe International Trade Fair among others including the CBZ Holdings, Tobacco Research Board, ZFC Ltd, Sable Chemicals Industry and Boltgas International (PVT) Ltd.
The IATF 2018, is being organised under the theme, “Transforming Africa” which is in line with the objective of AfCFTA.
The AfCFTA aims at increasing intra-African trade on the Internet, B2B, also known as e-biz, the exchange of products, services or information (e-commerce) between businesses, rather than between businesses and consumers.
Firms to showcase Zimbabweans products
Zimtrade chief executive Allan Majuru, said the 25 Zimbabwean companies will showcase the country’s products in the leather and leather goods sector, clothing and textiles, processed foods, tobacco, art and crafts and services sector including companies offering legal, financial and ICT services among others.
“The Intra-African Trade Fair will open up opportunities to engage with other African countries and to build strategic partnerships.
“It is an opportunity to get direct access to the lucrative AfCFTA market which according to sources, boasts of over 1 billion people and a combined GDP of over US$3,4 trillion,” he said.
More than 1 000 exhibitors and over 70 000 visitors are expected to attend while other countries are expected to put on a strong showing including Nigeria, South Africa, Sudan, Cote d’Ivoire, Kenya, Ghana and numerous other signatories to the AfCFTA.
ZNCC chief executive Chris Takunda Mugaga, said the fair was also an opportunity for the chamber of commerce to continue sending the message to Government to ratify the AfCFTA.
“If you look at the issues that will be under discussion there, they are to do with trade, how to move intra-Africa trade by 22 percent by year end from an average of 15 to 16 percent.
“So, obviously, the fact that we are going with a number of players including ZimTrade, which is an arm of Government, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe and a number of ministries, is confirmation that this would be an opportune time for the private sector to engage Government to ratify the AfCFTA.”
Telling the Zimbabwean story
Mugaga said given the foreign currency shortages in Zimbabwe, the fair provides businesses to go and tell the Zimbabwean story.
“It’s an opportune time to scale up in terms of trying to access foreign markets, which is what we need at the moment because of the forex shortages in Zimbabwe. I know the biggest challenge right now is not necessarily foreign currency shortages to the investors but that inability to remit dividends then it worsens the situation.
“If someone invests in Zimbabwe, the fact that you can’t take the money out of Zimbabwe is the biggest challenge at the moment not the investment climate or the investment laws or the indigenisation act.
“So the benefits would be two-pronged – at macro level, this is an opportunity for forex generation, at micro level this is an opportunity to create markets including in Egypt,” he said.
According to Kanayo Awani, the managing director of Intra-African Trade Initiative, the fair will launch the transformation of trade within Africa.
Historically, African countries have prioritised the European and American markets ahead of doing business in the region, which has resulted in manufacturers sourcing materials from outside the continent when they could access the same materials more affordably from within the continent.
