By ZBC Reporter
Government is working on a solid plan to diversify the country’s export markets as part of efforts to avert risks associated with having one dominant trading partner.
The latest trade statistics released by Zimbabwe Revenue Authority indicate that at least 45 percent of exports are intended for one destination.
This has prompted the National Trade Development and Promotion Organisation, Zimtrade to intensify measures to establish and develop new markets to mitigate risks related to reliance on a singular export market.
Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (ZIMRA)’s Annual General meeting held recently exposed the potential risks associated with heavily depending on one market for trade, which calls for an urgent need for export strategies to diversify into other markets.
Zimtrade is doing currently is premised on this skewed trade situation between Zimbabwe and South Africa hence we have covered a lot of ground in terms of assisting local companies to access markets that are far and wide both in Africa and the rest of the world. Regionally, we are targeting such markets as the DRC, Mozambique and Rwanda, among other markets,said Zimtrade Operations Director Similo Nkala.
Equally worrying is the fact that at least 47 percent of imports are from one country, with analysts concurring that this does not provide for a good reading if trade concentration risks are anything to go by as explained by Economic Analyst Persistence Gwanyanya.
What these statistics simply tell you is that diversification is key and substitution is a priority because anything that happens to South Africa that disturbs their economy has dire effects on the local economy,he said.
Zimbabwe upcoming participation at the Dubai Expo 2020 which starts next month is also meant to tap into new foreign markets and reclaim lost markets.
This is in light of the fact that Zimbabwe’s exports were destined to over 150 countries in the 1990s with that number having dwindled to just 92 in 2015.
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