Zimbabwe and Uganda aim to elevate their long-standing fraternal relations by strengthening commercial ties, which currently amount to a negligible annual trade value of about US$1 million.
Zimbabwe’s Justice Minister, Ziyambi Ziyambi, standing in for the Foreign Affairs and International Trade Minister, told a business forum in Harare that Zimbabwe and Uganda share a relationship grounded in Pan-African solidarity, mutual respect, and a common aspiration for economic transformation.
“Over the years, our two countries have worked closely within regional and continental frameworks to advance Africa’s development agenda and to promote greater economic integration,” Ziyambi said.
“Today’s gathering builds upon the strong momentum generated in September 2024 during the historic launch of the Entebbe–Harare direct flight by Uganda Airlines, as well as the inaugural Zimbabwe–Uganda Trade and Business Forum that followed shortly thereafter on the following day here in Harare.”
He described air connectivity as a powerful enabler of economic diplomacy.
“By shortening travel time and improving accessibility between our two markets, this route has strengthened people-to-people relations, stimulated tourism flows, and opened new opportunities for trade, investment, and cultural exchange.
“Vast opportunities exist for cooperation in agriculture, agro-processing, manufacturing, value addition and the creative industries, sectors that are essential for job creation and sustainable economic growth,” Ziyambi said.
Tarde development and promotion agency, ZimTrade chief executive Allan Majuru made reference to the Afreximbank’s 2025 African Trade Report which says Africa’s total merchandise trade rose by 13.9 percent to US$1.5 trillion after a contraction in 2023, yet Africa still accounts for only 3.3 percent of global exports.
“While Africa may be increasing its participation in global trade, much of that participation remains concentrated in low-value exports and externally processed commodities
“What matters now is the composition of trade: the extent to which Zimbabwe and Uganda can export processed goods and contribute to our regional value chains and increasing the share of intra-African commerce. That is where durable gains in jobs, productivity, foreign currency earnings, and industrial resilience in both countries will come from,” Majuru said.
Uganda’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs John Mulimba, said the purpose of the forum was to build cooperation and partnership.
“That\'s the reason we are here. Why should we host this Zimbabwe-Uganda business forum? It\'s to explore our potential bilaterally, but also explore the opportunity of the appetite that exists,” Mulimba said.
“On the issue of logistics….we are land-linked. So how do we explore the benefits we can derive from that?,” he added as he referred to a proposal for haulage trucks to be used between the two countries ferrying goods back and forth.
