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ZITF2024 preprations

Exhibitors

ZITF2024 foreign exhibitors top last year’s figure

by Editorial Team
written by Editorial Team

Foreign countries and companies are displaying increasing interest in the country’s international exhibition, the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair (ZITF). This was revealed by the ZITF Company Chief Executive Officer, Dr   Nicholas Ndebele during an update to the media in Bulawayo on Monday this week.

The event is set to run from 23 to 27 April 2024 under the theme: “Entrepreneurship: The catalyst for Industrialisation and Trade.”

Dr Ndebele highlighted that the number of foreign exhibitors that have confirmed participation in this year’s edition so far had increased to 30, up from last year’s figure of 22. This represents a 36.4 percent upsurge in the number of foreign exhibitors when compared to last year’s numbers.

“Space uptake by foreign exhibitors has also been good with 30 international exhibitors from 24 different nations being represented at ZITF2024, up from 22 countries last year,” Dr Ndebele said.

The ZITF boss indicated that to date, exhibitors from Botswana, Belarus, the People’s Republic of China, the European Union, France, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Iran, Japan, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Netherlands, Nigeria, Romania, South Africa, South Korea, Sweden, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States of America and Zambia had confirmed participation at this year’s event.

Turning to the preparations for the event, Dr Ndebele said that the exhibition had been fully subscribed in record time.

“We are currently sitting at 97 percent of space capacity with 486 exhibitors who have taken up 48,199m2 square metres. This places us almost at par with the booking situation at the same time last year, where 48,408m2 had been booked (97.7 percent),” he said.

Commenting on the events and engagements, which will run concurrently with the trade fair, Dr Ndebele said they would centre on the role of entrepreneurship in facilitating the various facets of industrialisation and trade. The concurrent events present opportunities for networking,

 “The upcoming discussions will focus on the impact of entrepreneurship on industrialisation and trade, opportunities for international collaboration and investment, strategies for fostering entrepreneurial ecosystems and innovative approaches to overcome trade barriers and promote global market access. We are expecting a mix of local and international programme participants as well as attendees,” he said.

The main concurrent events include the ZITF International Business Conference, the Africa Symposium, the ZITF Charity Golf Challenge and the Innovators Forum.

Kenyan President, William Ruto is expected to officially open this year’s edition of the trade fair.

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ExhibitorsOrganisers

ZITF Co striving to enhance exhibitor experience, returns – Moyo

by Editorial Team
written by Editorial Team

The Chairman of the ZITF Company, which organises the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair, Busisa Moyo has told stakeholders that the entity is pulling all the stops to improve exhibitors’ experience during and benefits from this year’s edition of the event.

Moyo highlighted this during a media update on ZITF2024 preparations in Bulawayo yesterday. He highlighted that the company had been marketing the event since January this year and, as of yesterday, almost 95 percent of the available space had been snapped up.

The ZITF Company Chairman indicated that his entity was a holding series of meetings with relevant stakeholders who handle travel, accommodation and logistics to improve exhibitors’ and visitor’s experiences before and during the trade fair.

“Last week, senior executives engaged in a series of stakeholder engagement meetings with other critical players within the exhibition ecosystem who have a role to play in delivering a seamless exhibition experience for our participants. Some of these include port and customs authorities, local airlines as well as the hotel and hospitality industry.

Key objectives of the meetings were to garner their support in areas such as increased flights into the city, quality and affordable accommodation as well as ease of passage at points of entry. Feedback was positive and we hope to see the results of these meetings reflected in positive post-show reviews,” Moyo said.

The company is also harnessing eventing technology for visitors’ convenience. This includes virtual registration for those who wish to visit the trade fair on business days.

“Visitor registration is now open on the ZITF virtual platform (www.zitfevents.com) to allow free pre-registration for attendees who wish to visit the trade show on the business days. To assist them to plan their participation more effectively and enhance the exhibition experience, we have launched a range of digital tools, including the ZITF Events mobile app. The app will be available for download from popular app stores such as the Google Play Store and Apple App Store from the 15 March 2024. These platforms will enable visitors and exhibitors to book and schedule meetings (matchmaking) and use QR code scanning to easily obtain and share contacts, among other exciting features,” he said.

In line with its tradition of assisting exhibitors, especially first-time ones, to make the most of the business event, the ZITF Company is set to host an exhibitor training event in Harare next week.

“Next week we will be hosting a training seminar for all exhibitors on how to exhibit effectively and realise a positive return on their exhibition investment. The informative and interactive session will take place on Wednesday 13 March 2024 at the Rainbow Towers in Harare.

“This seminar will provide valuable insights and guidance to exhibitors on optimising their exhibition strategies and effectively showcasing their products and services. It presents an excellent opportunity for exhibitors to enhance their skills and knowledge in presenting their offerings to a diverse audience and potential business partners,” Moyo said.

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ExhibitionsOrganisers

ZITF2024 preparations in full swing

by Editorial Team
written by Editorial Team

The preparations for this year’s Zimbabwe International Trade Fair are at an advanced stage and are progressing well. This was disclosed by the ZITF Company Chairman, Busisa Moyo in an update to the media yesterday.

This year’s edition of the event is set to be held from 23 to 27 April under the theme: “Entrepreneurship: The Catalyst for Industrialisation and Trade.” The first three days of the tradeshow will be a strictly business-to-business trade period while the last two days, 26 to 27 April, will be open to the general public.

Moyo indicated that most of the available exhibition space had already been taken up as the market responded to the Company’s marketing efforts since the beginning of the year.

“Market response to the sales and promotion campaign launched in January has been positive. Of the net space available for sale (49,499m2), 94.9 percent has been booked to date (46,945m2). This places us at par with the booking situation at the same time last year when 47,120m2 had been booked (95 percent),” he said.

Moyo highlighted that the number of exhibitors had already surpassed that of exhibitors who had registered by the same time last year.

“In terms of exhibitor numbers, we are currently sitting at 495 direct exhibitors. This compares favourably with the 2023 booking situation where 439 exhibitors had expressed interest by this time (13 percent higher),” Moyo said.

Turning to participation by foreign exhibitors, Moyo stated that the number of confirmed exhibitors from foreign countries was very close to last year’s figure.

“Space uptake by foreign exhibitors has also been good with 19 foreign nations being represented at ZITF2024. So far, we have confirmed exhibits from Belarus, Botswana, the European Union, France, Germany, Italy, Iran, Japan, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Netherlands, Romania, South Africa, South Korea, Sweden, United Kingdom, United States of America and Zambia. We are currently waiting on other nations to consolidate and confirm their space requirements and are positive that we will surpass last year’s closing total of 21 countries,” he said.

The ZITF Company Chairman, however, pointed out that the run-up period to the exhibition days was dynamic and characterised by new bookings and some exhibitors dropping out, thereby necessitating regular updates.

Moyo revealed that the local exhibitor profile was very rich and diversified with representatives from sectors such as agricultural implements and equipment, automotive equipment, building and construction, civic representation, clothing and textiles, education and training, energy products and equipment, food products manufacturing and processing, business tourism products and services, information communication and technology, medical/health related products, mining equipment, pharmaceuticals and chemicals.

He said that the profile of international exhibits would cut across several sectors including agricultural produce and equipment, arts and crafts, automotive equipment, education, food and food processing, clothing, textiles and footwear, and cultural exchange programmes.

The ZITF Chairman gave some insight into this year’s theme, which evolves around the entrepreneur and entrepreneurship.

“(Entrepreneurs) rely on a thriving industrial ecosystem. The ZITF2024 theme recognizes this and seeks to tap into and harness the entrepreneurial spirit which exists in many of us. This year’s exhibition floor will, therefore, feature established industries showcasing their latest advancements, alongside the newest start-ups brimming with fresh ideas. ZITF 2024 will essentially be about the cross-pollination between established players and agile entrepreneurs, and the creation of an enabling environment that propels them to industrialise and trade,” he explained.

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