adminEdgar Vhera
Agriculture Specialist Writer
EARNINGS from tobacco product exports rose 10 percent from US$1, 3 billion in 2023 to US$1, 4 billion in 2024 with stakeholders urging concerted value addition efforts towards achieving a US$5 billion industry this year.
Statistics from Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZimStats) show that tobacco export earnings rose from US$1 297 280 021 in 2023 to US$1 427 109 343 last year.
Source: ZimStats
The country exports its tobacco as partly or whole stemmed/stripped tobacco or not stemmed/stripped, refuse, smoking tobacco, cigarettes containing tobacco, manufactured tobacco as well as cigars, cheroots and cigarillos containing tobacco.
Partly or wholly stemmed/stripped tobacco accounted for 92 percent of the earnings with cigarettes containing tobacco coming second at seven percent.
Average prices received for the different product classes show that cigars, cheroots and cigarillos containing tobacco had the highest figure of US$41, 67 per kilogramme followed by tobacco which was partly or wholly stemmed/stripped at US$7, 22.
Cigarettes containing tobacco came third at US$6, 16 per kilogramme while smoking tobacco was on fourth position at an average price of US$5, 66.
| 2024 tobacco product classification | Net Weight (Kg) | US Dollar Value | Average price |
| Tobacco, not stemmed/stripped | 443,591 | 1,315,062 | 2.96 |
| Tobacco, partly or wholly stemmed/stripped | 180,969,959 | 1,306,035,103 | 7.22 |
| Tobacco refuse | 50,465,844 | 20,197,777 | 0.40 |
| Cigars, cheroots and cigarillos containing tobacco | 229 | 9,527 | 41.67 |
| Cigarettes containing tobacco | 15,572,213 | 95,929,495 | 6.16 |
| Smoking tobacco | 638,821 | 3,612,592 | 5.66 |
| Manufactured tobacco, extracts and essence, nes | 13,464 | 9,787 | 0.73 |
| Total | 248,104,121 | 1,427,109,343 | 5.75 |
An analyst who requested anonymity said the country can achieve its 2025 target if it expands production and exports of high-paying cigars, cheroots and cigarillos containing tobacco.
“If half of the tobacco exported last year was sold as cigars, cheroots and cigarillos containing tobacco, the country would have earned over US$5 billion (US$5 913 561 724).
Stakeholders at last year’s Business Weekly Tobacco Conference in Harare also their voiced concerns on high raw tobacco shipments yet the country can be Africa’s leading cigarette exporter.
Chevron Tobacco Company executive director, Mr Tapiwa Masedza said Zimbabwe was the leading exporter of raw leaf tobacco within the African continent, yet it did not feature among the top five cigarette exporters surrendering its spot to non-tobacco producing countries.
“The top five leading leaf exporters in Africa are Zimbabwe, Tanzania, Malawi, Uganda and Zambia, yet not one of them features among the top five cigarette exporters in the continent.
“We are now talking of non-leaf producing countries like South Africa, Tunisia, Egypt, Senegal and Ivory Coast, as the top cigarette exporters from the continent,” he said.
Statistics recently released by Trade Statistics for International Business Development (ITC Trade Map) show that no African country was among the world’s top 30 tobacco-containing cigarettes exporters in 2023.
The report also revealed that within the African continent, Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, Morocco and Tunisa in decreasing order were the leading cigarette exporters.
Zimbabwe came sixth on the African continent and 42 in the world in terms of cigarettes exports.
“We need to look at what we can do to incubate cigarette production here in Zimbabwe to benefit from high value product exports in terms of regulation and production techniques,” added Mr Masedza.
Pacific Cigarette trade and marketing manager, Mrs Kudakwashe Chiutsi said value addition of raw tobacco into cigarettes and auxiliary industry development would have ripple effects of creating and maintaining employment in the tobacco industry in addition to increased export earnings for the country.
“Cigarette manufacturing and development of ancillary industries can provide hope for job sustenance throughout the whole year.
“Potential is there to upgrade machinery and sustain volumes for cigarette manufacturers,” Mrs Chiutsi said.
Online Reporter