Wallace Ruzvidzo — The SADC Industrialisation Week, which will precede the forthcoming 44th Sadc summit to be hosted by Zimbabwe, will provide an opportunity for local businesses to showcase their products and services for export in the region and beyond.
This was said by the business development director for ammonium sulphate manufacturer, Chilmund Chemicals, Mr Nicholas Bhero in an interview this week.
He said his company was geared to expand its presence to other countries in the region. Already, the company, whose chemical manufacturing plant was officially commissioned by President Mnangagwa last year, is making more than enough ammonium sulphate to meet local demand with their biggest buyer being the City of Harare, which uses the chemical to treat water.
"It (SADC Industrialisation Week) gives us an opportunity to showcase what we are doing and we are hoping to meet stakeholders from SADC member states and discuss about possible collaborations.
"As a Zimbabwean company, we will be able to supply them with an alternative for their inputs, quality products which are affordable. So it's something that we are really looking forward to, where we are going to cross -pollinate and engage with stakeholders, especially those in the water sector," he said.
Platforms such as the SADC Industrialisation Week, said Mr Bhero, provided growth opportunities for Zimbabwean businesses.
The six-day event is scheduled to run from July 28 to August 2, under the theme "Promoting Innovation to Unlock Opportunities for Sustainable Economic Growth and Development Towards an Industrialisation".
"Our production far outweighs the local demand so we are now gearing towards the export market and we are so excited about the SADC Industrialisation Week because it speaks to the plans that we have of expansion into the region."
Mr Bhero said the availability of water treatment chemicals in the country meant that water-borne diseases such as cholera would not be a problem going forward.
"It does not only strengthen regional integration and of course increasing our GDP but it also helps, like it is doing at the moment in Zimbabwe where all the councils are adequately supplied. So talk of things like water-borne diseases, cholera which had been wreaking havoc will be dealt with," he said.
Chilmund Chemicals' operations, said Mr Bhero, were environmentally friendly and in line with the Second Republic's call for the environment's preservation.
"One thing that I will tell you is the technology that we have is the first of its kind in Africa, and is the fifth in the world.
"You come to our plant, you don't see any emissions, we produce in environmentally sustainable ways and our product is nonferrous," he said. The SADC Industrialisation Week is an annual public-private engagement platform designed to foster new opportunities for intra-African trade, develop cross-border value chains, and identify investment opportunities in the region.
It will precede the senior officials, Council of Ministers Meetings, and Sadc Summit of Heads of State.