MCCCI encourages competiveness ahead of fair

The Malawi Confederation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry (MCCCI) has challenged businesses—both big and small—to be competitive and restructure their strategies towards improving their productivity level to facilitate export led growth.

MCCCI membership service and communication manager Natasha Phoya Kalea said this on Wednesday in Blantyre at a media briefing in readiness for the 26th Malawi International Trade Fair (Mitf) under the theme

‘Productivity: A key to Exploiting export opportunities’ from June 20 to June 29 at Chichiri Trade Fair Grounds.

“We understand that productivity growth is crucial in the improvement of a country’s economic growth because it translates to increased value addition and production. It accelerates innovative competitiveness relative to the countries trading partners and offering competitive products. As such, we thought of focusing on productivity this year,” she said.

Kalea said entrepreneurs should ensure they produce high quality and competitive products to meet the requirement of export market.

Justifying this year’s theme, she said it was set in line with government’s policies aimed at improving the country’s productive base thereby, facilitating export-led growth and to exploit export opportunities from its trading partners.

“While focusing primary agricultural exports which are not very competitive in the foreign market, a trade deficit has worsened as such, this year’s fair aims at providing a new angle to the business to exchange ideologies of enhancing their business productivity levels as a necessary foundation for exploiting opportunities,” she said.

So far, over 200 pavilions have been booked and allocated to different companies both local and international.

Some of the participating countries who have confirmed their participation in this year’s fair include Kenya, Bangladesh, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

As part of this year’s activities, Kalea said there will be business to business matching making meetings, business workshops meant to showcase goods and services to buyers, business days meant for business executives to come and discuss with exhibitors and school days specially designed for school going children to promote their careers as they will be allowed to visit different companies within the trade fair grounds.