Staff Reporter
Zimbabwe will this year participate at the rescheduled Dubai 2020 Expo which is scheduled to run from 1 October 2021 to 31 March 2022 under the theme “Connecting Minds, Creating the Future,” a Government official has said.
The Expo was initially supposed to have been held from October 1, 2020 to April 10, 2021 but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Addressing the media during the fifteenth Post Cabinet Press Briefing in the capital yesterday, Minister of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Monica Mutsvangwa revealed that the National Day for Zimbabwe at the Expo 2020 Dubai will be March 14, 2022 and that His Excellency President Emmerson Mnangagwa is expected to officiate at the event.
The Minister revealed that motional activities that will be showcased include Retail Store, The World Market Kiosk, Culinary Experiences, Fashion, Arts and Culture, Thematic Business Forums, and Women’s Pavillion.
“The three sub-themes for the event, which form the pillars around which countries, companies and industries will amplify their exhibitions, will be as follows: “Opportunity”; “Mobility”; and “Sustainability”. Zimbabwe will participate and exhibit under the Opportunity sub-theme cluster, emphasizing the business opportunities, new industries, employment, financial, governance and education opportunities available. The country’s theme statement is “Zimbabwe-the Land of a Great People”, which will showcase the Vision, People and the “Zimbabwe is Open for Business” mantra,” said Minister Mutsvangwa.
The Minister highlighted that the objectives of Zimbabwe’s participation at Expo 2020 include promoting Zimbabwe’s engagement, re-engagement and image building agenda, unpacking the country’s Vision 2030 to promote investment opportunities in Zimbabwe and attract investors in various sectors including mining, agriculture, manufacturing and infrastructure development among others.
In terms of progress made to date regarding preparations towards the Expo, Minister Mutsvangwa advised that the country’s stand had been designed and Expo organisers were in the process of fitting the pavilion.
“Meanwhile, the mobilisation of companies in various niche areas to participate continues. Going forward, the nation will be advised of developments in preparations for the Expo through frequent updates,” she said.
Meanwhile, to accelerate preparations for the country’s participation at the Expo, the Minister revealed that the Cabinet agreed to set up an Inter-Ministerial Committee which includes private-sector and will be chaired by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Affairs. Other committee members will include Minister of Industry and Commerce, Minister of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Resettlement, Minister of Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises Development, Minister of Youth, Sport, Arts and Recreation and Minister of Finance and Economic Development among other Ministers.
Minister Mutsvangwa said Cabinet appreciated that the Expo was important for re-engagement, expanding exports market, as well as developing the local market. In that connection, she said the Government would take the opportunity to advise that it had export development tax incentives in place for export-oriented initiatives, in particular a lucrative tax rebate for exports.
