TRYNESS TEMBO
Bujumbura
PRESIDENT Hakainde Hichilema has called on the incoming Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) chairperson Évariste Ndayishimiye, President of Burundi, to prioritise economic integration to improve intra-regional trade.
Mr Hichilema called on Mr Ndayishimiye to combat nontrade barriers (NTBs), which he said are hampering efforts to deepen regional integration.
Speaking during the handover ceremony of the instruments of power to the new chairperson – Mr Ndayishimiye and his vice-chair President William Ruto of Kenya – yesterday at the 23rd COMESA Heads of State and Government Summit, Mr Hichilema said COMESA intratrade currently stands between 11 and 12 percent, a situation that he described as unacceptable.
“We need to strengthen our political will to address the emerging issues around NTBs.
This is hampering our efforts to deepen regional integration. It’s actually a negative development which we must watch very closely going forward, and deal with decisively whenever these issues arise…https://enews.daily-mail.co.zm/
