Zim-Rwanda trade and investment conference starts next week

A total of 60 Rwandan businesses are expected to participate in this year’s Zimbabwe-Rwanda Trade and Investment Conference, slated for March 28 through April 1. The meeting, organised by Rwanda Development Board (RDB), is a reciprocal to last year’s conference that was hosted in Kigali, as both countries seek to deepen economic ties. Speaking to The New Times in an exclusive interview on Wednesday, Allan Majuru, Chief Executive of Zimbabwe’s export promotion agency, ZimTrade, said that preparations are underway and that 100 Zimbabwean companies are expected to participate. Rwanda’s delegation will be led by Minister of Trade and Industry Beatha Habyarimana alongside the Minister of State in charge of East Africa region in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Manasseh Nshuti. “Zimbabwe-Rwanda trade and investment conference that is going to be held in Harare, is going to follow up on issues that we discussed last year when we went to Rwanda with a delegation of more than 80 private sector players that managed to stitch a lot of deals and also find a number of investment opportunities in both countries,” he said. However, Majuru added that the main purpose is to make sure that “we solidify and concretize some of the deals that were discussed in Rwanda and also pave the way for future trade and investment opportunities that are going to come through.” Majuru didnt comment on some of the pending deals but The New Times understands that the exchange on human resource in the education sector could finally be materialized during the conference. It has been nearly a year since President Paul Kagame requested for Zimbabwe teachers, in an inquiry he described as ‘urgent’. On Majuru’s side, Zimbabwe’s interest is to ensure that Rwanda acts as a launchpad to do business with other countries including Burundi and Democratic Republic of Congo. “But also equally for them is to use Zimbabwe as a hub to penetrate the SADC region,” he added. New deals to create market access During the conference a total of three agreements are expected to be signed as part of the efforts to further create market access. They include a memorandum of understanding on trade and investment, an implementation agreement between Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (ZESA) and Rwanda Energy Group (REG) as well as a memorandum of understanding between Rwanda’s Private Sector Federation (PSF) and Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce (ZESA). Trade between Rwanda and Zimbabwe has previously been on a small scale, and businesses are optimistic that with the conference on the horizon, more opportunities will be created.

News

Zim-Rwanda trade and investment conference starts next week