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Business Reporter

Zimbabwean firms, in various sectors of the economy, will take advantage of the Zimbabwe-China Business Forum set for Beijing, China, to identify potential areas of trade between the two countries.

The Zimbabwe-China Business Forum scheduled for May 30, 2023 to June 1, 2023, and organised by the national trade development and promotion agency, Zimtrade, provides an opportunity for businesses from both countries to meet in person and build relations and business links.

Foreign Affairs and International Trade Minister Ambassador Frederick Shava will lead the Zimbabwean delegation attending the business event.

The business forum, which is in line with President Mnangagwa’s policy of engagement and re-engagement, can lead to increased trade and investment, promote economic growth and create new opportunities, which can benefit both economies.

China is Zimbabwe’s third largest trading partner and according to the Chinese Embassy, trade between Zimbabwe and China surged 29,2 percent year-on-year to a record US$2,43 billion in 2022.

Through its Twitter handle, the Chinese Embassy said in January this year that Zimbabwe exported US$1,3 billion worth of goods to China and imported US$1,13 billion worth of goods from China.

Exports to China are however dominated by primary products mainly tobacco leaf, processed tobacco, ferroalloys and chromium ore.

In an interview this week, ZimTrade chief executive officer Allan Majuru said the business forum will go a long way in meeting the National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1) objective of increasing value-added products from 9 percent of exports to 20 percent of gross domestic product.

Under NDS1, exports are expected to grow to US$14 billion by 2030, which will be a significant contribution to the country’s quest to become an upper-middle-income economy.

“The Government policy of looking east is also what we are looking at to make sure that we benefit from people who are supportive of our policy direction,” said Mr Majuru.

He said while the Covid-19 pandemic had restricted in-person interactions between the business communities in the two countries, the business forum was an opportunity to meet in person, “exchange samples and finalise discussions’.

“It’s difficult to finalise discussions without meeting each other,” Mr Majuru said.

The two countries continue to boost economic and trade ties and over the years, China has made major investments in Zimbabwe’s infrastructure and mining projects.

“China has put in a lot of investment into the country, if you look at mining they have done a lot, but we are also now trying to say we have a lot of manufactured goods that can enter the (Chinese) market competitively,” said Mr Majuru.

He added that the main focus for the Zimbabwe delegation would be to look into how the country can penetrate the Chinese market with its horticulture products.

“For us, our main focus is to look at horticulture, you might be aware that the citrus protocol is about to be finalised, so we also need to prepare for that.

“We did a survey in Beira to see if the logistics can work for us to competitively export citrus using Beira Port to China and that is looking positive as we speak,” Mr Majuru said.

ZimTrade is also looking at other horticulture crops such as blueberries, and avocados and according to Mr Majuru “all those things require protocols to be put in place”.

“But we also need to have an appreciation of what the demand side looks like in China, and also arts and crafts and also leather products.”

Zimbabwe has in the past managed to export to China but going forward, according to Mr Majuru, there was need to make sure “we group together our SMEs so that there is a consistent supply of goods”.

“Our SMEs in the crafts and also leather sectors are scattered so we want to have the demand side pull them so that they are organized, so we are also going to look into that.”

Apart from looking for export opportunities, the business forum will also be used to help manufacturers source equipment and machinery.

“Remember we are using equipment that is dilapidated and that affects our competitiveness, so China is a good source of equipment.

“We are going to be inviting manufacturers of machinery and equipment to this business forum so that they can engage with our manufacturers,” Mr Majuru said.

The event will see delegates from both public and private sectors discussing issues in the agriculture, mining, manufacturing and tourism sectors.

In agriculture, discussions around horticulture and the value addition of tobacco and cotton will be key.

“China is the biggest buyer of our tobacco, so we are going to have sessions to address issues in tobacco, and cotton, and here we are talking about value addition.

“And also our sesame and we have clusters here that are already exporting to China, so we need support in terms of contractual arrangement so that we can increase production, so agriculture is going to be looked at,” said Mr Majuru.

There will also be sessions on mining where China has significant presents in the country and has recently invested in lithium and steel production.

“China is one of the biggest investors in mining so we like that to keep on coming but also with the focus on value addition,” said Majuru.

Tourism is also key and the business forum will have a session that will look at tourism “so that we also market, not only Victoria Falls but the destinations that the Chinese, when they come through, can benefit from”.

Apart from seminars, the Zimbabwe delegation will also conduct site visits to potential suppliers and potential buyers of products.

Participants at the Zimbabwe-China Business Forum will include representatives from the Zimbabwean and Chinese governments, as well as industry players from mining, energy, manufacturing, leather, technology, agriculture, processed foods, clothing and textile, packaging, building and construction, and engineering services.