Botswana: Botswana Minister of Trade and Industry Mmusi Kgafela spoke at the ongoing Botswana – Zimbabwe Business Forum that is currently going on in Maun, Botswana.
During the speech, Trade Minister Kgafela talked about the cordial working relations between Zimbabwe and Botswana. Minister Kgafela also said despite some challenges, the two countries have always stood side by side.
Furthermore, Minister Kgafela also encouraged Botswana companies at the forum to explore the Zimbabwe market for export opportunities and take advantage of bilateral relations that facilitate and enable cross-border trade.
For his part, Zimbabwe’s Foreign Affairs and International Trade Minister spoke on his part he discussed the trade relations between both countries.
Minister Shava said Zimbabwe exports a lot to Botswana, and this augurs well for increased trade. He called on the business community from Botswana, Botswana, and Zimbabwe to network for possible partnerships, as enabled by the available bi-lateral trade agreements.
After the Foreign Affairs Minister’s speech, the BITC CEO gave an overview of the opportunities that exist between the two countries, highlighting areas that both business communities could tap into to grow trade and business relations between the two countries.
Olebile mentioned that BITC has done studies in Zimbabwe that the business community in Botswana has access to as they seek to do business with Zimbabwe. He implored the Botswana and Zimbabwe business communities to use the services of entities like BITC, which can assist with relevant information for those interested in doing cross–border trade or investing in Botswana or Zimbabwe.
ZimTrade CEO Allan Majuru also gave a brief on the Doing Business Environment in Zimbabwe, stating that there is still a great opportunity for Botswana and Zimbabwe to trade. He said that Botswana is not in the top 10 countries that Zimbabwe exports to, and that is one aspect to be addressed. He observed that there are some notable products that Zimbabwe exports to Botswana, but there is an opportunity for the offering to be increased.
On the issue of the safety of investment in Zimbabwe, – Zimbabwe Investment and Development Agency Chief Legal Officer Theresa Muchinguri said Zimbabwe has put in place measures to ensure that there is security of tenure in Zimbabwe as long as investors satisfy all that is required by law. She was responding to a Botswana delegate who had wanted to know if their investment would be safe if they were to invest in Zimbabwe.