Staff Reporter
Zimbabwe and China will co-host the first-ever China-Zimbabwe Tobacco Expo in September 2025, following a landmark agreement signed last week to bolster collaboration in the tobacco sector.
The event aims to drive innovation, sustainability, and value addition in Zimbabwe’s tobacco industry, a cornerstone of the nation’s agricultural economy.
The Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) and the Asia-Europe and Africa Joint Trade and Investment Promotion Association (AEA Association) formalised the partnership through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed in Harare last Friday.
Supported by Zimbabwe’s Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development and the country’s trade agency ZimTrade, the Expo will unite stakeholders from Zimbabwe, China, and other African nations to exchange technologies, strategies, and solutions for transforming the tobacco value chain.
TIMB acting chief executive Emmanuel Matsvaire emphasised the Expo’s role in addressing critical challenges facing local farmers and processors.
“Some of the challenges we face in Zimbabwe’s tobacco sector may already have solutions in China. This Expo is about connecting Zimbabwean tobacco growers and industry players with Chinese innovations that enhance productivity, promote sustainability, and increase value addition," said Matsvaire.
Key themes will include sustainable tobacco curing technologies, with China set to showcase methods that eliminate wood use—a model Zimbabwe aims to adopt to curb deforestation and reduce production costs.
The Expo will also highlight advancements in seed development, agronomy, processing, and market linkages.
The collaboration was initiated during the 2024 China International Import Expo in Shanghai, where TIMB and AEA Association officials identified synergies between Zimbabwe’s Tobacco Value Chain Transformation Plan and China’s technological expertise.
The plan seeks to boost local processing from the current 2% of raw tobacco exports to 30% by 2030, aligning with broader economic modernisation goals.
Scheduled activities include exhibition halls, conferences, field tours, live demonstrations, and networking platforms.
Participants will span farmers, merchants, input suppliers, financiers, researchers, government agencies, and private sector players. Zimbabwe anticipates leveraging Chinese investment and knowledge to upgrade infrastructure, enhance quality standards, and access new markets.
China remains Zimbabwe’s largest tobacco buyer, importing approximately 100 million kilograms annually—about one-third of the country’s output.
The Expo underscores deepening bilateral ties, with Zimbabwe positioning itself as a key supplier of premium tobacco while adopting cutting-edge practices from the world’s top producer.
