African Countries To Participate At Zimbabwe International Trade Fair 2024

By Wallace Mawire 

A number of countries have so far confirmed to participate at the forthcoming Zimbabwe International Trade Fair (ZITF) to be held in the city of Bulawayo in Zimbabwe on 23 to 27 April,2024.

 ZITF Board Chairman, Busisa Moyo said that to date, they have confirmed exhibitions participation  from 27 countries from Africa and also from other parts of the world.

 According to Moyo, at the time of writing, confirmations have been received from  Botswana, Belarus, Brazil, People’s Republic of China, Kingdom of Eswatini, European Union, France, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Iran, Japan, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Netherlands, Nigeria, Romania, South Africa, South Korea, Sweden, Tanzania, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States of America and Zambia.

  ‘’This compares favourably with last year’s closing total of 21 countries represented.

 Business visitor pre-registration is on-going and we invite business people and corporate executives who have not already done so to pre-register for free-entry into the exhibition during the three business days,’’Moyo said.

  Moyo added that the ZITF Company, organisers of the highly anticipated Zimbabwe International Trade Fair are excited to announce a broadened focus for the event.

  He said that while the core commitment to supporting industry, commerce and overall economic development remains, the 2024 theme has been expanded to, “Innovation: The Catalyst to Industrialisation and Trade.”

   He added that the new theme recognizes that innovation and entrepreneurship are complementary forcesthat work together to open pathways to economic growth and progress.

  Moyo said that entrepreneurs leverage innovation to create successful businesses, while innovation thrives through the adaptability and risk appetite of entrepreneurs.  

   According to Moyo,the theme also recognizes that Zimbabwe currently boasts a vibrant and growing innovation scene, largely because of Government initiatives as espoused in the guiding Vision 2030 whose focus is on promoting innovation, entrepreneurship, equitable development, and prosperity for all.

   ‘’We are also cognizant of the vital role that innovation plays not only in driving industrialization and trade, but also in ensuring a sustainable future for our planet. By focusing on innovative solutions, we aim to equip businesses with the tools and strategies they need to thrive in an ever-evolving global landscape,” Moyo said.

  In addition to the multiplicity of sectors traditionally represented at ZITF, according to Moyo, the broadened focus acknowledges the need to encompass a wider range of topics and widen the catchment of exhibiting companies to include those involved in Disruptive innovation and its impact on various industries, harnessing the power of digitalisation for sustainable growth, grassroots innovation and tech start-ups, green technologies and eco-friendly business practices, creative initiatives that drive social responsibility and inclusive development and  learning from and leveraging- opportunities synergies with international trading partners.

•  “Meanwhile, as preparations for the international, multi-sectoral tradeshow are heading to a climax, the uptake by exhibitors has been quite pleasing. We are currently sitting at 98% of space capacity with 517 exhibitors who have taken up 48,881sqm square metres of the set aside 49,499 Square metres,” Moyo said.