The Sunday Mail
A private sector-led trade and investment fair will run from September 15 to September 18 in Letchworth Garden City, UK.
Coming at a time when Liz Truss has just won the Conservative Party leadership contest to become the UK’s new Prime Minister, this first-of-its-kind trade and investment fair provides hope to businesses who are seeking to grow trade between Zimbabwe and Britain.
Trade between Harare and London remains low.
The first decade after Zimbabwe’s independence was full of promise as both countries sought to leverage on their competitive advantages to grow trade and investment between them.
Relations, however, soured after the Fast-Track Land Reform Programme at the turn of the millennium.
The UK was at one time Zimbabwe’s second-largest trading partner after South Africa, but it is now ranked number 138, and accounts for less than 0,1 percent of total UK trade.
While trade between the two countries peaked at £461 million in 2018, it hit its lowest ebb of £126 million last year.
Likewise, investment between the two countries has followed a similar pattern. The outward stock of foreign direct investment (FDI) from the UK into Zimbabwe was £70 million in 2020 vis-à-vis the inward stock of FDI in the UK from Zimbabwe that was less than £5 million during the same period.
For countries that share so much in common, such a trend is a source for major concern; more so, given that there are approximately half-a-million Britons of Zimbabwean origin or descent in the UK as of 2019.
At the same time, the Office for National Statistics estimated that there were about 128 000 Zimbabweans who were in the UK for other reasons.
President Mnangagwa’s administration has been on a mission to accelerate engagement and re-engagement to reintegrate the country into the international community.
Vision 2030, which aims to transform the country into an upper middle-income economy by the year 2030, is premised on positioning the country’s products at the centre of all lucrative markets, new and old.
The UK is one such country seen as presenting lucrative opportunities for Zimbabwe.
This was confirmed by a market survey done by Zimbabwe’s trade promotion body, ZimTrade, to identify key export opportunities in the UK.
“The UK is considered to be the third most populated country in Europe after Russia and Germany, and is part of the leading economies in its region. The country’s gross domestic product (GDP) in 2020 was estimated at US$2,7 trillion and is a highly competitive and lucrative market, which is open to the world for trade,” ZimTrade said on its portal.
“UK’s economy is undergoing a historic realignment as the decision to leave the European Union required the country to re-establish itself as an independent economy, while at the same time dealing with the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. The transition following BREXIT has made the UK more self-reliant as the country is capitalising on the opportunities and promoting global interests.”
It is against this background that a Zimbabwean company, Nyaradzo Group, shall be hosting the inaugural trade and investment fair in Letchworth.
Over 700 people have registered to participate at the fair, including companies from South Africa, the UK and Zimbabwe.
Amongst the companies from Zimbabwe that would be taking part are Nyaradzo Group; Stanbic Bank; Pinnacle Properties; Kingfisher Prints; Mukuru; Beta Bricks and Avelyn Collections.
These are already household names in countries where they operate, with Mukuru emerging amongst the most preferred money transfer agencies for Zimbabweans living abroad.
Led by astute entrepreneur Philip Mataranyika, Nyaradzo Group started off in 2001 as a funeral assurance company before they became an integrated financial services concern, incorporating a life business, insurance brokerage, bureau de change, asset manager, events and lifestyles, and a casket and furniture manufacturing unit.
Stanbic Bank is a unit of Standard Bank of South Africa, which has been operating in Zimbabwe since 1965, while Pinnacle Properties is a subsidiary of Phillip Chiyangwa’s Native Investment Africa, whose vast land bank in Zimbabwe offers opportunities for Diasporans to build or acquire property.
To complete the list, Kingfisher and Avelyn are into fashion, catering across all age groups, while Beta Bricks is into brick-moulding.
What makes the upcoming fair unique is that it is being organised and convened by an enterprise from the private sector, Nyaradzo Group, with the full blessings of the governments from the two countries.
Having taken their investments into other territories, namely South Africa and the UK, it is encouraging to note that Nyaradzo has gone a step further to invite other companies from Zimbabwe and the UK to explore trade and investment opportunities on either side.
This demonstrates how the private sector can complement Government’s efforts in scouting for opportunities that are beneficial to their economies and people, which is critical in drumming up FDI, new employment opportunities and the generation of the much-needed foreign currency.
It is thus not surprising that the fair has earned the support of Zimbabwe’s embassy in the UK, where retired Colonel Christian Katsande shall be welcoming exhibitors.
The UK’s Department of International Trade has also been assisting exhibitors through processing their visa applications.
Local companies currently enjoy duty-free and quota-free exports for products into the UK, including blueberries, peas and tea.
A lot of other opportunities exist for suppliers of fresh produce (flowers, vegetables, fruits), processed foods, arts and crafts (accessories and visual arts), clothing, equipment and accessories, vehicles, processed foods, arts and crafts, as well as services (with a special focus on the labour market).
According to ZimTrade, considering the Eastern Southern Africa Economic Partnership Agreement (UK-ESA-EPA) which is currently in place, there is now a direct route to market for Zimbabwean products, as local exporters will continue to enjoy tariff- and quota-free access in the UK market.
According to the UK Department of International Trade, the top imports from Zimbabwe to the UK are vegetables and fruits, coffee, tea, cocoa, jewellery, works of art, metal ores and scrap, while the UK’s top exports to Zimbabwe are vehicles, specialised machines, office machines and live animals.
In a statement posted on Nyaradzo’s Facebook page, their group CEO Mr Mataranyika was quoted saying: “For many years, Zimbabwe has been regarded as a regional economic hub and a launching pad for both domestic and international businesses, making the Trade and Investment Fair appealing to investors looking to establish themselves in both the Zimbabwean and UK markets. The country is heavily investing in trade and infrastructure, particularly in the insurance industry’s rethinking towards financial inclusion and implementation of fin-tech solutions, of which Nyaradzo is a shining example of.”
One hopes that as the Trade and Investment Fair becomes a permanent feature on the calendar, its impact would be felt in both countries.
