Comesa summit begins

The two-day 21 COMESA International Trade Fair and High Level business summit started yesterday at the Kenyatta International Conference Centre in Nairobi running under the theme: “The Hallmark of Quality”.

Uganda President Yoweri Museveni joined presidents Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya, Edgar Lungu of Zambia and Paramasivum Pillay Vyapoory of Mauritius for presentations on Africa’s development future.

Key on the agenda is the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) which was endorsed by nearly all African countries in March 2018 in Kigali, Rwanda. The AfCFTA seeks to progressively eliminate tariffs on trade and drive up investments to the continent and its coverage would make it the world’s largest free trade area.

The host President Uhuru Kenyatta will address a Presidential Public-Private Roundtable on setting the tone on the AfCFTA opportunities for Africa, the future of COMESA, TFTA and AfCFTA, engage and interface with regional business leaders and entrepreneurs attending the COMESA Trade and Business Summit.

Uganda signed up to the landmark free trade area which brings together over 1,2 billion people across 55 states, with a gross domestic product (GDP) of $2,5 trillion.

According to a COMESA conference schedule, President Museveni will make a presentation on how technology can provide the much-needed advantage to accelerate industrialisation, market linkages needed for the implementation of the AfCFTA.

His presentation will also touch on some of the key policies and technology drivers that the region can employ within the AfCFTA and how leaders can ensure Africa’s readiness to integrate.

The third Kenya Trade Week and Exposition 2019 are hosting the fair under the theme, “Powering Regional Integration”.

The five-day trade expo that has attracted entrepreneurs, industrialists and manufacturers from the COMESA sub-region, is being conducted by the COMESA Business Council in partnership with Export Promotion Agencies and Private Sector Associations of the 21 COMESA member states, together with the Kenya Association of Manufacturers.

It is aimed at promoting manufacturers’ competitiveness, value addition for quality industrial output, and advancing cross border trade and inter business linkages among members of the COMESA Economic block. — Comesa.