THREE local companies won awards at the 7th SADC Industrialisation Week held in Harare last week in recognition of the quality of their products and services.
Bitumen World Zimbabwe emerged as the second runner-up in the Company of the Year, Large Enterprise category while Peace Security Company Service won the Service of the Year award under the Large Enterprise category.
Chilmund Chemicals which manufactures Aluminium sulphate, used in water treatment, was awarded Best Exhibition Stand.
The awards honoured exceptional companies that participated in last week's exhibitions.
Big Tree Beverages of Zambia emerged as the winner of the Company of the Year award, Large Enterprise category, M.A. Dlamini Consulting Engineers of Eswatini won the Company of the Year award, Small and Medium Enterprise category while Zambezi Portland Cement of Zambia emerged as the winner of Product of the Year award, Large Enterprises category.
Big Tree Beverages Zambia won the Exporter of the Year, Large Enterprises category, Municipal Council of Manzini Laboratory (Eswatini) walked away with the Service of The Year award, Small and Medium Enterprises category, and Baharan Lda Furniture from Mozambique won the Product of the Year under the small and medium enterprises category.
Speaking at the event, SADC secretariat deputy executive secretary Ms Angelle Ntumba said regional countries must anchor their economic growth on industrialisation and massive investment should be channelled towards value addition.
She said SADC countries should also invest more in research and development, which would enable the SADC community to develop homegrown solutions tailored to the region's unique challenges and opportunities.
"Our region is endowed with numerous wealth, including minerals, but what are we doing, exporting them raw and then importing value-added products from countries outside Africa?
"It is high time that SADC countries invest in value addition and avoid being perennial importers of luxury goods," said Ms Ntumba.
She noted that it was crucial to introduce transparent and harmonised policy, legal, regulatory, and institutional frameworks for transboundary Special Economic Zones to facilitate the growth of regional value chains.
Chilmund Chemicals director, business development, Mr Nicholas Bhero said the recognition that his company received validated its position as a leading chemical solutions provider in the region.
"Winning the Best Exhibitor award at the SADC 7th Industrialisation Week is a tremendous honour for Chilmund Chemicals. It is a testament to our unwavering commitment to innovation, quality, and customer satisfaction.
"More importantly, it underscores our contribution to the industrialisation of the SADC region. By showcasing our advanced chemical products and processes, we have demonstrated our ability to drive economic growth and development. This award inspires us to further elevate our standards and continue being at the forefront of the chemical industry," said Mr Bhero.
SIW 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 SADC region.
It was held as a precursor to the Senior Officials, Council of Ministers meetings, and actual Heads of State Summit, which was be held between August 9 and 18 2024 at the New Parliament Building in Harare.
Traditionally, SIW is organised by the SADC Summit host Government, through the ministry responsible for industry, the SADC Business Council, and the SADC Secretariat.
Zimbabwe introduced the SADC industrialisation strategy during the 34th Ordinary Summit of SADC Heads of State and Government held in Victoria Falls in 2014.
This culminated in the development and adoption of the SADC Industrialisation Strategy and Roadmap, which is aligned with Africa's economic blueprint, Agenda 2063.
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Since then, successive SADC summits have continued to carry a common message that emphasises the need for the region to industrialise and transform into a competitive community for improved lives and livelihoods of SADC citizens.
According to statistics the average share of intra-SADC and SADC extra-regional trade in goods and services was just below 20 percent in the last five years leading to 2019.
However, intra-SADC regional trade improved from 20 percent in 2021 to 23 percent in 2022.
This figure is relatively higher than the 14 percent intra-African trade, implying that SADC countries are trading more with each other compared with the continental average.
The region has been implementing the industrialisation strategy and roadmap, beginning with the first phase which ran from 2015 to 2020. The second phase, which is aligned with the SADC's vision, 2050, is running from 2021 to 2050.
