AfCFTA facilitates Zimbabwe-Namibia biz, Mnangagwa inaugurates Walvis Bay port

Namibia is extending bilateral relations with Zimbabwe with a new plan of importing fresh fruits and vegetables from the South African country. The home to diverse wildlife and significant cheetah population is pondering over closing the gap for the country's demand for vegetables and fruits.

A trade deal was signed between Zimbabwe and Namibia on SMEs recently in Windhoek. This was revealed by Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, Minister of International Relations and Cooperation in Namibia while giving a brief to the journalists on the positive results of the recently-ended 9^th Session of the Namibia-Zimbabwe Joint Permanent Commission of Cooperation.

According to New Era Live, the horticulture exporters in Zimbabwe earlier expressed concern over the high cost of export permit but the implementation of African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) has eased the previous imposed tariffs between the African countries. Now Namibia is expected to become a luring alternative to many horticultural farmers living in Zimbabwe.

The data shows that horticultural exports in Zimbabwe had a significant rise in the previous year after over USD 112 million worth of produce was exported. Namibia imported 96 percent of its fruit demand between 2017-2018 financial year. Both countries already have a bilateral trade agreement to practically implement the treaty.

"Once that agreement is signed, then the two countries have to notify the World Trade Organisation because of the trade agreement the two countries will have. Namibia has been given a task to inform the World Trade Organisation on that matter and that has to be done before end of October 2019," Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah revealed.

On the other hand, Zimbabwe is interested in exporting beef from Namibia and latter African country has agreed to it. By the end of August, according to her, Namibia will commence the application of exporting beef to Zimbabwe. "This has to be done because everything has to be in line with commodity-based trade standards of the World Organisation for Animal Health. And that's where the application will be made," she added.

Taarifa reported that Zimbabwe's President, Emmerson Mnangagwa has recently inaugurated the country's dry port facility located in Namibia's coastal port town of Walvis Bay. The aim is to ease the movement of goods and services from Zimbabwe via the port. It is believed to be a strategically located logistics hub in the Southern African region.

The facility will act as a transit and storage facility for goods destined for the landlocked country, and will also drastically improve shipment of goods back and forth, Emmerson Mnangagwa, Taarifa noted. "We will forever be grateful to Namibia for this gesture which has given us a one-stop-shop for quick logistical processing of our goods," he added.

Also Read: Morocco's King opens 'renewal talks' with Algeria on 20th anniversary of his rise