Bulawayo Hosts Regional Trade Summit, Eyes Cross-Border SME Boost

The Bulawayo Regional Trade Summit drew more than 600 delegates from across SADC this week, with a sharp focus on lowering border-crossing costs for small and medium enterprises operating between Beitbridge, Plumtree and Kazungula.

Speaking at the opening session, Industry Minister representative Tabeth Mlilo said Bulawayo’s position as a railway and road hub made it the natural home for cross-border SME conversations. “This city was built on movement — of goods, of people, of ideas,” she told the room.

Several practical commitments emerged from the two-day event, including a pilot single-window clearance system at Plumtree border post and a proposed SME trade financing fund anchored by AfreximBank.

Local industrialist Lovemore Sithole, who runs a leather goods firm in the Belmont industrial area, said the summit’s value would be measured in concrete border-time reductions. “Less talk. Fewer days at Beitbridge. That is what we need.”