Zimbabwe is set to host the first-ever Zimbabwe-China Tobacco Expo in Harare in the third quarter of the year. The event is a collaborative initiative between the Tobacco Industry and Marketing Board (TIMB) and the Asia-Europe and Africa Joint Trade and Investment Promotion Association, an international non-governmental organization.
The expo is expected to bring together a wide array of stakeholders from both countries, including tobacco farmers, merchants, manufacturers, government officials, and investors. The aim is to provide a robust platform for dialogue, innovation, and investment, while reinforcing Zimbabwe’s strategic partnership with China in the agricultural value chain.
Tobacco is one of Zimbabwe’s most significant cash crops and foreign exchange earners. With China importing approximately 100 million kilograms of Zimbabwean tobacco annually, about one-third of Zimbabwe’s total tobacco exports. The expo is seen as a timely initiative to further solidify bilateral trade relations and enhance value addition across the sector.
“Our farmers, through the value chain, have some challenges that probably have a solution that is available in China. What we want to do is to bridge the gap between what the farmers are looking for and what the Chinese can offer as a solution, from planting right up to the cigarette production,” he stated.
China has been a longstanding trade partner and supporter of Zimbabwe’s agricultural sector and Tianze Tobacco Company, China’s local subsidiary has been pivotal in supporting the local tobacco industry through contract farming since the introduction of Zimbabwe’s land reform program of the early 2000s.
Experts say the event could mark a turning point for Zimbabwe’s tobacco industry, encouraging the move from raw leaf exports to processed tobacco and related products, which would significantly increase local revenue and job creation as tobacco is Zimbabwe’s leading agricultural export and one of the country’s top foreign currency earners.
