ITC commends stride to enhance trade

THE International Trade Centre (ITC) has commended Zimbabwe for the massive strides it has made in enhancing trade opportunities and synergies for local exporting firms in regional and international markets.

ITC is a multilateral agency which has a joint mandate with the World Trade Organization and the United Nations through the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development.

The organisation’s deputy executive director Mrs Dorothy Tembo made the commendation while officiating at the ZimTrade Annual Exporters Conference in Harare yesterday.

This year’s conference, which ran under the theme “Exporting into the Future” has become an important event on Zimbabwe’s business calendar.

She said Zimbabwe, through ZimTrade initiatives, had posted major strides in facilitating consistent engagement with continental players, creating collaborations between local suppliers and manufacturers and international buyers.

Key markets establsihed by Zimbabwe in the past four years include the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which has grown to become the country’s second-largest trading partner from an insignificant trading partner a few years back.

Zimbabwean exports to UAE closed at US$2,13 billion in 2022, a rise from a considerably low aggregate of US$328 million and US$148 million in 2017 and 2015, respectively.

ZimTrade has also expanded efforts to connect local exporters and buyers in the region and beyond, with recent surveys having been conducted in Qatar, Nigeria, and Senegal in a bid to diversify export markets.

According to ZimTrade, the 2022 Exporters conference centered on export diversification, a resolution that has seen significant growth in the export of sesame and chilli among other crops.

Focus is now being channeled towards transforming rural businesses to become formidable export entities.

This is all in pursuit of the US$7 billion export volume target by 2023, as espoused in the 2019 National Export Strategy whose key aim is market diversification.

Addressing delegates at the conference, Mrs Tembo highlighted that ZimTrade had made considerable efforts in providing good insights into what is possible for Zimbabwe.

“Zimbabwe has been making commendable efforts in the last few years, enhancing opportunities for businesses through regional, continental integration efforts, as well as other global initiatives including through the consistent engagement with the WTO, laying the foundation for predictable market access and accompanying rules and regulations.

“What this illustrates is the effort, the commitment of the ZimTrade team in doing more for Zimbabwe businesses,” said Mrs Tembo

She lauded the export promotion body for launching capacity-building programmes like Eagles Nest and Next She Exporte, which are respectively aimed at capacitating youths and women-led enterprises for export business.

“ZimTrade won last year the ITC World Trade Promotion Award for the best initiatives for inclusive and sustainable trade. I am very pleased that I was part of the Next She Exporter programme launch, this programme speaks to what we are doing as part of the She Trades, already we are collaborating with ZimTrade in terms of capacity building in this particular area so we are progressively moving, integrating more women.”

Speaking at the conference, Industry and Commerce Minister, Dr Sithembiso Nyoni said Zimbabwe had made marked growth in manufactured exports this year up to August, which she attributed to improved power generation and good crop harvests.

Minister Nyoni added that her ministry targeted to increase merchandise exports by 10 percent per annum and also grow trade in services by 15 percent per year over the course of the National Development Strategy 1.

“The Second Republic under the leadership of President Mnangagwa will continue to craft policies that encourage productivity, improve industry competitiveness and grow the manufacturing sector in a manner that promotes exports.

“My ministry will work closely with all stakeholders and other line ministries to address issues such as transparency, trade barriers, improving the business environment, stabilising the macroeconomic environment among others,” said Minister Nyoni.

She expressed contentment over the growth in manufactured exports realised during the first eight months of the year led by exports of processed goods, manufactured tobacco, furniture, clothing, textiles, packaging, and stationery.

“It is quite pleasing to note that despite the number of challenges and sanctions that our country is under, exports of manufactured, value-added goods increased to US$284 million between January and August 2023 from US$234 million in the same period last year representing a 20 percent increase.

“The improvement is on account of improved power generation, improved access to foreign exchange for the importation of raw materials, and the bumper harvest in the past season.”

ZimTrade chief executive officer Mr Allan Majuru said his organisation was in the process of broadening its mandate to involve rural communities, organizing them into clusters with the capability to export.

“As we gather here today we are reminded of the immense potential that lies within our exports sector. Last year the conference came up with three resolutions, focusing on export diversification, and has seen growth in exports of sesame, chilli,” said Majuru.

He elaborated on how the export body had involved the participation of Universities in growing the country’s export base.

“We are working on a program where the Universities should also have a footprint in external trade, to date Chinhoyi University of Technology (CUT) has managed to get a deal to export watermelons to Dubai, they are going to start with five hectares, the deal has been signed what is left is to push the product for export by December.

“Our citrus products from Midlands State University (MSU) are going to be landing in Dubai next year and the logistics of this have been sorted out already.”

“Harare Institute of Technology (HIT) has managed to reverse engineer equipment to process baobab pulp for export as we speak.”

The International Trade Centre (ITC) is a multilateral agency that was created to foster inclusive and sustainable economic development among countries with a joint mandate with the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

Delegates from Malaysia, Botswana, Qatar, Russia, Mozambique, and Ghana attended the conference.

-herald