Southern Africa Cross Border Traders Association – SACBTA, Secretary-General Jacob Makambwe has emphasized the urgent need for a shift towards value addition in the country which would enable the production of goods that meet international standards, thereby reducing dependency on imports and increase foreign exchange, which could contribute to stabilizing the currency.
Makambwe highlighted the challenges faced by traders, citing the impact of climate change and reduced productivity in agriculture as significant factors affecting cross-border trade.
Speaking in an exclusive Interview with the Zambia Business Times, Southern Africa Cross Border Traders Association Secretary General Jacob Makambwe said, there is a need for traders to start being competitive by becoming productive in having at least value or goods that could be taken out in the markets.
He added that trade had been a bit more relative in terms of the challenges and the positives as a result of so many factors like the Impact of climate change, in most parts of the country including the SADC region as there had been a reduction in commodities that are trading from Agriculture due to very low productivity levels, that had been recorded in the countries, especially in Zambia, where the drought situation had been declared as national disaster.
“This has had a general impact on the cross border trade that most of the goods that were traded especially agriculture products are not traded in volumes In the way they were as a result of this impact,” He said.
Makambwe further alluded that the market will always be created in terms of commodities where they are needed, as most of the traders in Zambia do not actually export most of their products.
“We need to change and start focusing on value addition Into making sure that we have products or goods that we can take out there for exports, as much as we are looking forward to trade, maybe buying from other countries we need to become competitive by becoming productive in having at least value or goods that we need to take out in the markets that are opening up,” He said.
He further explained that the Comesa East African community and SADC Tripartite free trade area was going to take place on the 25th of July as it is going to be the creation of the tripartite free trade agreement or trade area that implores that the three mother bodies are supposed to work extra hard to make sure that the framework works in terms of market integration, which also involves trade Liberalization through the creation of the free trade area and arrangements for the movement of different persons and development of infrastructure which focuses on enhancing connectivity and reducing business cost.
Furthermore, Makambwe stated that traders are currently facing a lot of challenges like competition from the Chinese that are coming to trade in our country as well as producing some of their products as they are much more on the retail side instead of wholesale which is crowding out local traders that are buying from them to sell to other places as it is becoming a problem.
He added that there is a need for there to be a margin between the Chinese who are the producers but are selling to local traders as retailers.
Furthermore, Makambwe urged the Government through the Ministry of Commerce to try and address this issue by agreeing with them that they want the foreign direct investment that comes in through the Chinese investment but they do not want them to crowd out the market and trade environment.
