Zimbabwe’s value-added exports climbed from US$437 million in 2024 to US$571 million in 2025. Allan Majuru says the country’s coming COMESA chairmanship could help maintain that growth by connecting producers with regional buyers. The figures show export value, though—not how much income workers receive or how many jobs the increase has created.
A market for production
Zimbabwe will host the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa summit and related events from October 19 to 22. The 19th COMESA Business Forum and Multi-Sectoral International Exhibition will take place in Harare from October 19 to 21, bringing regional buyers, investors and businesses together with Zimbabwean enterprises.
The COMESA Business Council, ZimTrade, the Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce, the COMESA Secretariat and the Government are convening the forum. Its stated purpose is to support commercial partnerships and bring business priorities into regional discussions. Zimbabwe says it wants to expand production alongside neighbouring countries, while President Mnangagwa’s engagement and re-engagement agenda is presented as a platform for tourism, trade, investment and industrial partnerships.
COMESA’s 21 member states have more than 640 million people and a combined gross domestic product of approximately US$1 trillion. The bloc connects Zimbabwe with neighbouring markets, East African economies, North African industrial centres and Indian Ocean destinations. Majuru argues that access to those markets can make investments viable when domestic demand alone wouldn’t sustain them.
The region imported US$277 billion worth of goods from the world in 2024. Exports among COMESA members stood at approximately US$14 billion, compared with total exports to the world of US$202 billion. Intra-COMESA exports made up roughly 7 percent of the bloc’s goods exports. The figures show a large trade relationship, but only a limited share of goods exports moving among member states. Stronger regional production and supply relationships are an opportunity, not an accomplished result.
Who could supply the region
The proposed export base includes processed foods, fruit concentrates and oils from agriculture; clothing and textiles supplied by cotton; leather processing and finished goods from livestock; and construction and manufacturing products from growing iron and steel capacity. Mining activity across COMESA could also create demand for engineering products, equipment maintenance, protective clothing and technical services from Zimbabwean companies.
The account points to possible contracts between Zimbabwean packaging suppliers and food processors in other member states. Local engineering firms could also support regional agricultural and mining operations. Regional orders may bring business to transport operators, laboratories and professional services. Zimbabwean expertise in education, engineering, information technology and professional services could bring skilled workers into the export economy. Producers in Manicaland, Masvingo and Matabeleland are potential participants in horticulture, agro-processing, timber and leather value chains.
The article connects expanded production with employment and a larger share of value retained in Zimbabwe. But the trade figures don’t report wages, working conditions, company profits or jobs already created. The case rests on potential: larger production volumes could spread costs, a broader customer base could reduce exposure to disruption in individual markets, and export clusters could help smaller enterprises meet shared quality requirements.
Rules, costs and the state’s role
COMESA’s Free Trade Area offers duty-free access for qualifying goods between participating countries, subject to rules of origin and destination requirements. The bloc’s Simplified Trade Regime gives small-scale cross-border traders a more accessible route, with consideration for women and young people. At participating borders, eligible goods on agreed common lists can use simplified customs documents and certificates of origin within applicable value limits. Qualifying goods receive customs duty relief, but product standards and permit requirements remain.
Those conditions define the reach of the trade arrangements. The source says smaller firms still face costly logistics, border delays and restricted access to trade finance. It calls for trader training, consistent border implementation, customs coordination, wider electronic documentation and cooperation on standards. Reliable energy and transport infrastructure are also requirements for predictable production and delivery.
The Government is among the forum’s conveners, and Zimbabwe’s chairmanship is presented as a chance to improve practical arrangements for firms of different sizes. Whether projected export growth becomes durable production and employment depends, in the account itself, on those arrangements and on businesses’ ability to meet the bloc’s requirements. Zimbabwe’s value-added exports reached US$571 million in 2025.