Zimpapers Logo

Prosper Ndlovu, Business Editor

THE 21st Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (Comesa) Heads of State and Government Summit begins in Egypt tomorrow (Tuesday, Nov 23) with in-person and virtual participation of member countries and heads of African economic blocs.

During the summit, the President of Egypt, Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, will take over as the chair of Comesa from the outgoing chair, the President of Madagascar.

He would also lead the launch of the Comesa Medium-Term Strategic Plan (MTSP) 2021- 2025.

“Building Resilience Through Strategic Digital Economic Integration” is the theme for the summit, which seeks to rally member States on how to safeguard and advance the Comesa regional integration agenda.

Using digital platforms to facilitate doing business and enhancing their resilience to face the economic repercussions of the Covid-19 pandemic is at the heart of the crunch deliberations.

The 21^st Summit will also review a number of key reports on economic integration priority issues and the status of the Covid-19 pandemic in the region, the 42nd Meeting of the Council of Ministers held on November 9, the 17th Meeting of the Comesa Ministers of Foreign Affairs held on November 16, the implementation status of regional integration programmes in the region, as well as reports on the current Comesa round and the Comesa Business Council.

The Summit will also witness the swearing-in ceremony of the Comesa Court of Justice Appellate Division judge and the newly-appointed Commissioners of the Comesa Competition Commission and the Comesa Committee of Elders, in addition to the announcement of the winners of the media and innovation awards.

On Sunday, the Comesa secretary general, Ms Chileshe Kapwepwe, held a joint press conference with Egyptian Minister of Trade and Industry, Nevine Gamea, in which they shared key insights about the Summit.

“The Egyptian government is looking forward to making the most of Egypt’s second presidency of Comesa, 20 years later since the last time it assumed the chair of the authority in 2001, in further deepening cooperation among member states in many fields,” Gamea noted.

She said during its tenure as Comesa chair, Egypt was determined to work with other African countries, to achieve economic integration on the continent and overcome obstacles that may hinder free trade.

Egypt has also vowed to strengthen cooperation among investment agents in Africa and opening communication channels between the governments of member countries and the private sector to facilitate the movement of investments within the continent.

“Egypt is one of the key economic forces in Comesa, having the largest share of intra-Comesa trade in 2020, with a total of $2.7 billion. Comesa is also a promising market for Egyptian exports, which accounted for 20 percent of exports within the bloc, worth $2 billion; while imports from Comesa amounted to $700 million,” Minister Gamea said.

Top Egyptian exports to Comesa include plastics, salt, sulfur, lime, cement, ceramics, machinery and electrical appliances, mill products, paper, sugar, soap, essential oils, and perfume.

Gamea said her government has already developed a comprehensive vision for Egypt’s presidency of the Comesa, aiming at deepening economic integration between Egypt and member countries, to enhance the Egyptian presence in Africa in general and Comesa in particular.

Egypt’s one-year presidency of Comesa will focus on creating a business-friendly environment for the Egyptian business community to support its economic integration with Comesa countries; linking the business community within the Comesa region to support economic integration and increase the movement of intra-regional trade and investments; opening up opportunities for cooperation in priority sectors; in addition to sharing Egypt’s know-how in economic sectors with competitive advantage such as transportation, energy, communications and health with member states.

In her remarks, Ms Kapwepwe, explained that the Summit comes at a very critical time, especially in light of the challenges presented by the Covid-19 pandemic on most member States, whose economic performances have declined with the slowdown of the global economy.

These challenges, she said, are a motivation for Comesa countries to continue working to deepen economic integration and create a conducive climate for the business community and the private sector, intensifying efforts to boost joint investments in various infrastructure sectors, and most notably in telecommunications, transportation and energy.

Ms Kapwepwe said Comesa was one of the regional economic integration groups, which aims to achieve economic integration among the countries of the North, East and Southern Africa, through the establishment of a free trade area, followed by a customs union, and finally a common market among its member states.

She pointed out that Comesa’s average economic growth rate hit 5.6 percent in 2019 but fell significantly during 2020 due to the fallout of the pandemic on most member countries.

The International Monetary Fund forecasts a rebound in the Comesa economic growth to 4.3 percent this year and six percent in 2022, thanks to a worldwide economic recovery driven by vaccination efforts against the Covid-19 virus and a pickup in global demand.

Within Comesa’s appreciation of the role played by the media, Ms Kapwepwe said Heads of States will announce media professional winners of the Comesa Media Awards, for their excellent reporting on regional integration initiatives and efforts to raise the public’s awareness.

Eight media professionals have won the Comesa media awards over the past three years, including two from Egypt. Innovators who, with the help of science and technology, have come up with solutions to contemporary challenges and new products that could deepen regional integration will also be honored.