Story by Farai Gwaze
ZIMBABWE is positioning itself as a leader in creative industry trade under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), with the country among 25 nations that have committed to liberalising the creative sector.
The country has formally committed to the AfCFTA services protocol, opening new opportunities for local artists and cultural practitioners across the continent.
“Under the AFCFTA, we have the AFCFTA protocol on trading services where the creatives, tourism and cultural services industries fall under. Countries have committed to liberalise trade and services under this protocol and Zimbabwe is one of them. Zimbabwe is among the 25 countries that have already given what we call the schedules of commitment to liberalise the sector,” Director of Trade in Services, Investment, Intellectual Property Rights and Digital Trade-AfCFTA Secretariat, Ms Emily Mburu-Ndoria noted.
The Chief Executive Officer of Africa Tourism Partners, South Africa, Mr Kwakye Donkor, highlighted Zimbabwe’s potential to share its successful cultural narrative across the continent, building on the legacy of icons like the late Oliver Mtukudzi.
“I believe that the narrative of Zimbabwe can be shared with the rest of Africa for them to learn. Looking at Creatives Connect Afrika, if we take the case of Oliver Mutukudzi, he has been revered and celebrated throughout Africa and I am sure a lot of musicians can take a lot of opportunities similar to filmmakers. We brought a young man from Zimbabwe who is a filmmaker and producer for him to share his experience because every single country’s experience is different and the more we share, the better we become.”
This strategic positioning under AfCFTA demonstrates Zimbabwe’s commitment to leveraging its creative talents for economic growth and regional integration in line with Vision 2030.
