Business reporter
President Mnangagwa, who arrived here yesterday, will today officially open the 61st Zimbabwe International Trade Fair (ZITF).
This year’s edition is running under the theme, “Showcasing the New Normal for Business and Industry: Retailers and Opportunities.”
President Mnangagwa was accompanied by the Minister of Defence and War Veterans Affairs, Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri and was welcomed by Vice President Costantino Chiwenga and other Cabinet Ministers, among them Industry and Commerce Minister Sekai Nzenza, Security Minister Owen Ncube, Bulawayo Provincial Affairs and Devolution Minister Judith Ncube, ZITF company executives, security chiefs and other senior government officials.
This year’s expo, which is held under strict WHO Covid 19 protocols, has been graced by 396 local exhibitors and 11 countries. The foreign countries exhibiting are Botswana, Mauritius, Belarus, Indonesia, Kenya, Tanzania, Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa, Malawi, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The ZITF was postponed twice this year due to the global pandemic. However, the situation has vastly improved with Zimbabwe having achieved WHO’s target of vaccinating 10 percent of its population by September. The country is among the 13 countries that have achieved the target and is ranked seventh in Africa in terms vaccines roll out.
President Mnangagwa will proceed to Victoria Falls tomorrow where he will be expected to officially open the Southern Africa Chief Justice Forum (SACJF) and the Institute for Chartered Secretaries and Administrators in Zimbabwe (ICSAZ) 50th anniversary and annual conference.
