Cairo COMESA summit turning point for promoting trade, investment
Egypt-Regional, Economics, 3/17/2001

Cairo is setting the stage for hosting COMESA summit on May 22 under President Hosni Mubarak. The summit is deemed an important turning point for promoting trade and investment among the member states of the Community of Eastern and Southern African Nations and will herald the establishment of a COMESA customs union.

The summit would be preceded by preparatory meetings of the bloc's foreign affairs, economy and trade ministers on May 19-20 and a businessmen forum on May 21 to explore trade and investment prospects in the member states, said well-informed economic sources.

A trade fair will also be held on the sidelines of the COMESA summit to showcase products of some member states and review the needs of others. With an eye on this emerging African market, Cairo hosted in February 200 the first COMESA regional economic conference inaugurated by President Mubarak.

The conference afforded an opportunity for businessmen, investors and officials from the COMESA members to huddle together and discuss available prospects and potentials for investments as well as facilities catered by each country.

The two-day Cairo summit acquires major importance due to the fact that it will be convened after the inclusion of nine of the 20-member grouping to the COMESA free trade area, said the sources. The countries are Egypt, Kenya, Malawi, Sudan, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Djibouti, Madagascar and Mauritius. The summit will exhort other member states to follow suit and join the free trade area, especially that most members have slashed down customs duties by 60 to 80 percent.

Though the free trade area began with only nine members, the door is still wide open for the inclusion of the other 11 member states when they hit the zero-sum customs duties, said the COMESA secretary general.

The free trade area would be of benefit for all member states, as it would increase funds for development projects and accentuate inter-COMESA economic integration, he added.

The Cairo summit, meanwhile, will address issues pertaining to rules of origin, trading in agricultural commodities, transport as well as telecommunications and information networks. It will also mull over an Egyptian proposal on the establishment of a COMESA investment authority that would update investors with information on methods, potentials and fields of investment in the member states.

Established in 1994, COMESA became a promising African market and on of the biggest regional ones worldwide with population of 380 million people. Inter-COMESA trade stands at $ 2.4 billion, with efforts being exerted to up it to $4 billion.

Previous Stories:
  Mubarak calls on COMESA Leaders to meet in Cairo   (11/2/2000)
  40 Egyptian companies in COMESA fair tomorrow   (10/25/2000)
  Moussa meets with businessmen   (7/4/2000)

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