One of Zimbabwe showcasing opportunity is the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair (ZITF), which is an annual even and this year’s 64th Edition was held from 22-27 of April 2023. This year’s ZITF was themed, “Entrepreneurship: The Catalyst for Industrialisation and Trade” rooted in the recognition of the vital role that entrepreneurship plays in driving economic growth, fostering innovation, and propelling industrialisation and trade. The theme in entrepreneurship recognises the creation of new business ventures or the pursuit of corporate entrepreneurship within established organisations, these visionaries who dare to dream big, and act on it, have the power to ignite industrialisation and propel economies forward.[1] This year’s 2024 ZITF edition was the second year in which the European Union is showcasing the various interventions and development initiatives it is funding through the country with support from different development partners. These interventions included: research in agroecology; intellectual property; livestock improvement systems; agriculture value chains development; sustainable wildlife management; youth developments; arts and culture. The focus will be on the two Team Europe Initiatives; Green and Climate Smart Agriculture (GCSA) and Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (GEWE).
RAIZ project interactions with different clients during the ZIFT, April 2024
The RAIZ project had the pleasure of also explaining its project research activities and how this can assist in producing scientific evidence for informing policy to the EU Ambassador who in turn assisted the high-level government officials and other delegations during their tour of the EU stand. Research institutions especially state universities were really interested in the RAIZ project and these included: National University of Science and Technology (NUST), Great Zimbabwe University (GZU) and Lupane State University (LSU) and other Development Partners like UNDP and ZELA exploring possible synergies between the RAIZ project and their interventions to explore efficient use of working in the same district or nearby districts. This illustrated that there is a lot of interest from individuals and organisations in research especially in the agricultural sector targeting productivity and resilience building for smallholder farmers in the face of climate change in Zimbabwe and Southern Africa.
Figure 1: (First Picture – RAIZ Project Manager interacting the EU Ambassador Jobst Von Kirchman on key aspects of the RAIZ Project).
(Second Picture – RAIZ Project Manager (extreme left) interacting with the Dr. Ayodele Odusola UNDP Resident Representative for Zimbabwe (second from right) together with French Embassy Diplomat Benjamin (second from left).
It was indicated that the European Union is supporting projects worth approximately USD $600 million running in Zimbabwe and very limited number of people know about and hence the ZITF is the appropriate platform to showcase how the European Union and Government of Zimbabwe are working together to strengthen development in the country. This year the TEAM Europe stand was represented by six (6) embassies (France, Sweden, Germany, Romania, Italy and Netherlands) through the “EU WITH YOU, SILANI, TINEMI” Campaign reflects the EU-Zimbabwe partnership dedicated to a sustainable and prosperous future for all
(https://www.eeas.europa.eu/delegations/zimbabwe/european-union-delegation-zimbabwe-showcases-expanded-presence-2024-zitf_en?s=129#:~:text=The%20EU’s%20presence%20at%20ZITF,and%20prosperous%20future%20for%20all). For the second year running The European Union – Team Europe stand was awarded the first prize for the Best International Exhibitor and the EU Ambassador Jobst Von Kirchman was present to receive the award (see https://twitter.com/euinzim/status/1784283246303367367).
Figure 2: From the left EU Ambassador Jobst Von Kirchman receiving the trophy for the Best International Stand & to the right if the Ambassador highlighting on Eu funded projects his HE E.D. Mnangagwa & HE W. Ruto of Kenya who was guest President for the ZITF.
The RAIZ Project Manager (extreme left) explaining the RAIZ research activities to his audience EU Ambassador J. V. Kirkman (second from left), Hon general (Rtd) Vice President C. Chiwenga; Hon Dr. Sekai Nzenza (Minister of Industry and Commerce).
The Team Europe stand experienced traffic from the various stakeholders including government officials; including H.E. ED Mnangagwa were also exposed to the various interventions supported by the European Union including the RAIZ project. The Ambassador Jobst Von Kirchman had the opportunity to also walk HE E.D. Mnangagwa and HE W. Ruto (President of the Republic of Kenya) through the EU funded projects. The Vice President of Zimbabwe Hon. General (Rtd) C. G. Chiwenga also graced the EU Team Europe stands in the company of Ambassador Jobst Von Kirchman to appreciate the different interventions that EU is funding throughout Zimbabwe.