Africa-Press – Tanzania. ZANZIBAR President Dr Hussein Mwinyi on Monday decried negligible intra-Africa trade, challenging African nations to deepen commercial and economic cooperation among themselves.
President Mwinyi estimated trade volume among African countries at below 27 per cent, with Tanzania’s trade with other African countries accounting for hardly 13 per cent of her total trade volume.
Unfortunately, African countries trade mostly with Asia, Europe and American continents at the expense of themselves, Dr Mwinyi noted with concern.
He said legal and gender barrier-free participation of all people is inevitable for the success of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
“Without full involvement of women in tackling the business and entrepreneurial challenges, there would be no success in execution of the goals behind establishment of AfCFTA and various regional institutions,” President Mwinyi told the third Arusha symposium here.
He reminded the conference that the place of women in the 21st century of business and entrepreneurship has been elevated because the number of women in business at national levels in Africa has soared, as has their number at international level.
Dr Mwinyi said social and economic development has to move parallel with efforts to solve existing challenges, which cripple women participation in business.
Despite the registered successes in the African continent after formation of the African Union (AU), it was deemed appropriate to establish the free trading area to cement economic development and close cooperation among various countries through business.
The isles leader added that the AU had identified huge weakness in economic and trade cooperation even in products and services that could be easily supplied from within the union member states.
He implored the symposium participants to deliberate on the challenges that hinder women from achieving AfCFTA goals, pledging his administration’s keenness to implement all the convention resolutions.
President Mwinyi thanked the Pan African Centre for Policy Studies (PACPS) for its choice of Zanzibar as conference venue, inviting all delegates to use the opportunity to visit various tourism attractions in the islands, including Stone Town, the home of immense history of Zanzibar islands.
Trade and Industrial Development Minister Omar Said Shaaban described the conference as a platform that seeks to deliberate on the best ways for effective participation of women in business in the African continent under AfCFTA regime.
He said women in the commercial sector in many nations globally face serious challenges of doing business, underscoring the need to devise ways of empowering them to survive especially the corporate competition.
Minister Shaaban said many countries already have articulate policies and programmes whose implementations however remain a big challenge. He reminded women to act now in formulating and analyzing the policies instead of waiting for others to work for them.
PACPS Chairman Judica Amri-Lowson described the participation of women in free trade in the African continent as key to economic and social development transformations.
The chairman said the institution works with governments and institutions to promote business in the continent with special push for female entrepreneurs.
East African Legislative Assembly Speaker Martin Ngoga said women have special space in the East African Community (EAC), thanks to their contribution towards unity and economic prosperity in their respective EAC member states.
He said within the assembly there is arrangement to ensure that whatever is planned has gender consideration, with permanent deal in place to check against the reemergence of the challenges.
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