via EU to launch business information centre in Harare | The Zimbabwean 25 July 2014
The European Union (EU) will on August 1 launch the Zimbabwe-EU Information Centre (Zim-EBIC), a new initiative that will allow local businesses to access trade information from the western regional bloc.
In a statement, the EU said the Euro 3 million information hotspot was part of its Support to Trade and Private Sector Development project implemented by the International Trade Centre (ITC).
It is expected to contribute to the promotion of trade and private sector development between the EU and Zimbabwe.
“It (the project) will also assist in strengthening the capacities of key actors like intermediary organisations and business associations in order to provide better Business Development Services to their members,” said Aldo Dell’Ariccia, Head of the EU Delegation in Zimbabwe.
Dell’ Ariccia will launch the project together with Mike Bimha, Minister of Industry and Commerce.
“The establishment of the centre specifically aims at creating mutually beneficial linkages between Zimbabwean businesses and European counterparts. It also seeks to act complementary to the public and private sector agencies of EU Member States and Zimbabwe,” read the EU statement.
The EU said Zim-EBIC was set up within the local ZimTrade’s trade information centre located in Mount Pleasant, Harare.
It is envisaged to assist exporters, among them small-to-medium enterprises, “to easily access market information, including such tools as the Market Access Databases, the Export Help Desk and EU publications”.
EU-Zimbabwe relations are thawing following targeted restrictions placed on Zimbabwe in 2002.
The EU is set to resume directly engaging with Harare in November this year, heralding the complete removal of the targeted measures.
The bloc imposed the restrictive measures following its concerns around widespread claims of property and human rights abuses, electoral fraud and bad governance by President Robert Mugabe’s Zanu (PF) government which in 2000 embarked on a controversial land redistribution programme that displaced close to 5,000 commercial white farmers.
COMMENTS
This sudden U-turn by the EU is further proof that unless Zimbabweans lead the way to their freedom,nobody shall.Otherwise personally um not amazed by the EU’s principles given the bloc’s sadistic support of apartheid Israel on Palestine.Yes the country needs foreign support to jump-start the economy,but this support must be welcomed with concern as it might also serve the wrong purpose of implicitly resuscitating the current regime asphyxiated by the debilitating economy-to their failure in the eyes of the electorate.Lest we forget that the MDC inadvertently saved Zanu pf from extinction by joining the GNU.The EU is more like coming to serve the same purpose again at this juncture,only to prolonging our suffering in the name of imported help.Zanu will never change from a 3decade behaviour,the EU is only being parochial and naïve here.Sad.
True the EU has shown its true colours. This Business Info Centre must serve all Zimbabweans and not just Zanu Cohorts. Let us see.
The EU has seen the writing on the wall; the Chinese takeover. This is a matter of genuine concern & in spite of their dislike of Mugabe, they are forced to try to forge a partnership with this regime to show the Chinese they still want a piece of the pie before it’s all gone. It’s really sad.
To all those making comments , what we need is the revival of the economy regardless of the status quo or political affiliations . Stop finger pointing please !!
as long as the disease of lining our pockets still thrives even the EU cannot stop what is imminent,,the collapse of our economy,,,truth is we could still have a thriving economy with or without restrictive measures,we doomed
EU must stop playing with suffering Zimbabwean population by bailing the regime from its economic chaos. MDC bailed the regime again in 2009 by joining a GNU and prolonged the suffering of Zimbabwean population. Enough is enough let ZANU PF hang itself.