Govt unveils 2021-2030 leather sector strategy (The Chronicle)
CABINET has approved the new Zimbabwe Leather Sector Strategy 2021-2030 that is anchored on increased investments and maximising on value addition and beneficiation to promote export-led industrialisation.
The leather sector is regarded as a low-hanging fruit for the Zimbabwean economy given the country’s comparative advantages in livestock and crop production, which provide key raw materials.
The strategy, which is a successor to the Leather Sector Strategy (2012-2017), seeks to increase the overall competitiveness of the leather value chain in Zimbabwe and enhance access to both local and export markets for the finished products.
Experts discuss AfCFTA (The Herald)
With Covid-19 having forced postponement of the launch of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), the continent’s thinkers met this week to discuss its coming implementation.
Trading under the AfCFTA is now scheduled for January 1, 2021 having been postponed from July 1, 2020 owing to Covid-19.
AfCFTA, through its main goal of integrating African economies, will put African economies on a better footing.
AfCFTA will be the largest trade agreement as it promises to create a continental trade bloc of 1,3 billion people and a combined Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of US$3,4 trillion.
The African Capacity Building Foundation (ACBF) this week hosted the 7th Africa think tank summit. ACBF is the African Union’s specialised agency for capacity development.
Scrap metal exports costing local firms: CZI (The Chronicle)
THE continued exportation of scrap metal is disadvantaging local businesses who need the raw material and industry leaders are lobbying the Government to limit such trade for the benefit of domestic firms.
The Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries (CZI) Matabeleland Chapter is lobbying its members for an imminent stakeholder engagement with the Government so as to address the issue.
The call to ban exportation of crude tar and scrap metals for the benefit of the local industry has been raging on for some time with business leaders saying it was counterproductive for the country to export scrap yet local industry is being starved of the same raw material. Also see our summarized statistics here.
Industries target African markets as demand plunges (The Zimbabwe Independent)
In separate papers submitted to government, the Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries (CZI) and the Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce (ZNCC) said companies can still redeem lost opportunities at home by targeting stable economies to generate foreign currency and build fresh capacities.
The CZI said these regional markets include the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), which cuts across a region with 1,2 billion consumers and a US$3,2 trillion gross domestic product (GDP).
They also want President Emmerson Mnangagwa to scale up integration and help domestic firms open up markets within the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (Comesa), East African Community (EAC) and Sadc Tripartite Free Trade Area (TFTA).