Ethiopian Informer
ADDIS ABABA (EI): African experts and decision-makers have called for more efforts to spur industrialization towards driving national and regional economic growth and development in Africa.
The experts and policymakers made the call on the sidelines of the Seventh Southern African Development Community (SADC) Industrialization Week and Exhibition, which kicked off in Harare, Zimbabwe on July 28, the Addis Ababa-based United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UN-ECA) said in a statement.
The experts argued that industrialization anchors economic growth, industrial development, and facilitates trade creation and Special Economic Zones (SEZs) are a key policy tool in this endeavour.
Addressing the meeting, Eunice Kamwendo, Director of UN-ECA’s Sub-Regional Office for Southern Africa, highlighted that SEZs are important policy tools to support private sector development, including micro, small and medium-sized enterprises.
“SEZs should align with a country’s comparative and competitive advantage and be supported by a conducive policy and regulatory environment, including the integration of these zones into broader national development plans and policy frameworks,” a UN-ECA statement quoted Kamwendo as saying.
“Strong political will is necessary to secure bilateral investment commitments to the zones by providing confidence to investors,” Kamwendo added.
She emphasized that stakeholders in the region should consider the specific needs, priorities, and comparative and competitive advantages of each country in the region in deciding on specific SEZs approaches. In addition, she underlined that it is crucial to introduce transparent and harmonized policy, legal, regulatory, and institutional frameworks for transboundary SEZs to facilitate growth of regional value chains.
United Nations Resident Coordinator in Zimbabwe, Edward Kallon, in remarks read on his behalf by the UNESCO Regional Director of the Regional Office for Southern Africa and UNESCO Representative to Zimbabwe Nisha, also lauded the UN-ECA for supporting regional structural transformation, development and growth through various targeted initiatives in member States.
“ECA remains a trusted partner in the development journey in Southern Africa and has specifically and has, recently supported Lesotho, Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe in recalibrating industrial policies for alignment and harmonization with regional frameworks,” Nisha said.
She underlined that the Southern Africa region should leverage its mineral wealth for sustainable industrialization and the creation of sustainable jobs while adhering to lofty environmental and social standards, adding that this requires strong governance frameworks, elaborate environmental regulations, and the active participation of all stakeholders.
“The path to sustainable industrialization in Southern Africa requires collective effort, strategic planning, and unwavering commitment,” Nisha said. “By harnessing the potential of SEZs, supporting MSMEs, and leveraging the support of development partners, we can build resilient economies that are both inclusive and sustainable.”
During the Seventh SADC Industrialization Week and Exhibition, the UNECA sub-regional office for Southern Africa organized two expert sessions as part of its support to the regional industrial development agenda.
According to the UNECA, the sessions, which focused on establishment and management of SEZs and on critical energy transition minerals development, provided a platform for sharing experiences on the development and managements of SEZs, both on national and cross-border levels. The sessions also allowed regional experts to explore the emerging issues in the exploitation of green minerals and the just energy transition leveraging the rich natural resource base on the continent.
(PHOTO credit: UNECA)
