Government and EU launch “Promote Trade” project to boost investment and exports

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Government and EU launch “Promote Trade” project to boost investment and exports

7:38 CAT | 31 Mar 2021

Photo: Supplied

The Mozambican government, through the Ministry of Industry and Commerce (MIC), and the European Union (EU) this Monday (29) launched a project called “Promote Trade” {Promove Comércio], which aims to boost structural development of priority value-chains geared towards exports, and a qualitative increase in European investment in Mozambique, news agency Fim-de-Semana writes.

“The set of objectives to be achieved with this project also includes the contextual and structural modelling of the Made in Mozambique seal, the enhancement of quality improvement, certification and image of national production, as well as the consolidation of strategic support for the modernisation of Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises, to increase their level of exports and participation in the European market and in local content,” the source reads.

Speaking at thee launch of the initiative, Deputy Minister for Industry and Trade, Ludovina Bernardo, announced the creation, development and institutionalisation of the framework and integrated ecosystem of safeguard measures to stimulate national production, one of the essential objectives of the project.

“We want to promote the strengthening of the national and local private sector. We know and believe that this project can be one of the catalysts for our operational aspiration to value and consume national production, diversify exports and boost investment,” Bernardo stressed.

According to the communique, the project, operated in partnership with the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), is funded by the European Union and also aims to support the implementation of the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) and the Trade Facilitation Agreement ( AFC) of the World Trade Organization (WTO).

Speaking at the event, the EU Ambassador to Mozambique, António Sánchez-Benedito Gaspar, said that the EU intends to contribute to the process of economic growth in Mozambique, creating jobs for the population by strengthening commercial competitiveness.

The ambassador stressed that the EU expects to, with this project, “move forward with urgency in terms of quality and in the diversification of the country’s export capacity and, for this, we have the best team and partners”.

For his part, the UNIDO representative in the country, Jaime Comiche, said he hoped that the implementation of the project would contribute to the materialisation of the structural transformation of the economy and the goals advocated by the government’s 2020-24 programme, and enable companies to take greater advantage of the SADC market, the SADC-European Union Economic Partnership Agreement, and the African Continental Free Trade Agreement.

By Evaristo Chilinde

Source: Carta de Moçambique