Economist urges SMEs to form associations to leverage AfCFTA opportunities

By Andile Mvundla | 9 January 2025

Economist Dumisani Sibanda has urged small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Zimbabwe to form associations to effectively leverage the opportunities presented by the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

The AfCFTA, which brings together 55 African countries with a combined GDP of over US$3 trillion, aims to create the world’s largest free trade area.

This ambitious initiative seeks to integrate markets for goods and services, facilitate the free movement of people and capital, and foster economic growth across the continent.

In an interview, Economist Sibanda emphasized the critical need for local SMEs within the same sector to collaborate through associations saying that these play a crucial role in enabling SMEs to share knowledge, access market information, and secure capital funding.

“Small business in the same sector can come together to form associations that enhance their opportunity to share knowledge, market information and source capital funds. This allows them to pool their expertise, market insights, and financial resources,” he emphasized .

Sibanda further highlighted that such associations would empower SMEs to penetrate markets that may be inaccessible to individual businesses.

He added that this collaborative approach will enhance small businesses’ bargaining power, allowing them to negotiate better prices and improve their competitiveness within the AfCFTA market.