Africa-Press – Zambia. ZIMBABWE and Zambia are holding a three-day meeting to review progress on joint projects and strengthen ties ahead of the 2026 Bi-National Commission.
The meeting brinks together senior officials from the neighbouring country in Harare for the Mid-Term Review (MTR) of the 18th Session of the Joint Permanent Commission on Co-operation (JPCC).
MTR will assess progress made since the last JPCC meeting held in March last year while preparing for the Bi-National Commission scheduled for 2026 in Lusaka, Zambia.
In his opening remarks, Zimbabwe’s Foreign Affairs and International Trade secretary Albert Chimbindi hailed the co-operation between the two nations, especially in trade, defence, security, tourism and agriculture.
“The working relationship between ZimTrade and its Zambian counterpart, Zambian Development Agency (ZDA) is commendable, as illustrated by the visit by ZimTrade to Zambia, to identify land for the construction of a warehouse in Kasumbalesa, whereby (the) project will give both countries an opportunity to increase trade in their local products, particularly of fast-moving consumer goods and agricultural equipment, among others,” he said.
Chimbindi noted progress in the tourism sector highlighting the implementation of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on tourism co-operation and convening of the Joint Tourism Technical Committee Meeting in Kariba in January this year.
“It is worth noting that the two countries have been participating in each other’s tourism exhibitions, since both our economies are agro-based, co-operation in the agricultural sector is one of the low-hanging fruits,” he said.
Although there has been some co-operation between the two countries in this area, Chimbindi called for the finalisation of pending agreements, including a draft memorandum on agriculture co-operation.
“It is, therefore, imperative that we bring to finality the negotiations on the draft MoU on co-operation in the field of agriculture,” he said.
“During this two-day session, our deliberations will reflect on areas of cooperation of mutual benefit and interest, as well as the contentious issues of trade and other engagements between our two countries.
“While there have been several positive steps that are noted, there are also signs that the joint commission is not on track to achieve many of the important agreed targets and corrective measures are, therefore, urgently needed.”
Meanwhile, in a speech read on her behalf by assistant director for co-operation in the Zambian Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation ministry Bentry Sialambwa, secretary Etambuyu Gundersen said the two countries had recorded progress in some areas despite the challenges the they have faced.
“It is important that we focus on some of the challenges that remain in order to move the process forward,” she said.
“These include the finalisation of several key agreements or MoUs, including those in immigration, SME development, environment, tourism and commodity trading.”
Foreign Affairs and International Trade minister Amon Murwira and his Zambian counterpart Mulambo Haimbe will co-chair the meeting tomorrow.
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