Source Africa Exceeds Expectations. With 1,401 participants, 170 exhibitors and 36 buyers from local and international retailers, Source Africa 2013 was a resounding success.
Attracting International Brands and Retailers to Source Africa. On Southern Africa's emergence as a sourcing platform, Steve Lamar, executive vice president of AAFA explained it succinctly: "It is clear that there is strong and growing interest in doing business with this part of the world."
Trade Hub Grant to Improve Hybrid Maize Access in Malawi. The USAID Southern Africa Trade Hub has provided a grant of US$100,000 to Capstone Seeds SA (PTY) to accelerate commercial access to drought-tolerant hybrid maize seed in Malawi. Capstone, an independent South African seed company, will now enter into a joint venture with Peacock Enterprises Ltd of Malawi to multiply and market "CAP9001" in Malawi.
Trade Hub Grant to Accelerate Groundnut Production in Zambia The Southern Africa Trade Hub has awarded a grant of US$100,000 to Central African Seed Services (CASS) to purchase equipment for a first-of-its-kind groundnut processing facility in Lusaka, Zambia. The investment is expected to facilitate more than US$6 million of trade.
Helping Laboratories Make the Grade The Southern Africa Trade Hub has made a $100,000 US grant to fund training for testing laboratories in the agro food production and processing sector. Agro food processing is a priority sector for development in Southern Africa, yet a significant roadblock remains before the sector can achieve full growth.
A Closer Look at Textiles and Apparel The Trade Hub recently undertook an in-depth analysis of the textile and apparel industry in Southern Africa as an effort to boost investment interest in the region. Country reports and subsequent briefs on Botswana, Lesotho, Mozambique and Swaziland provide a clear landscape of the trade and investment opportunities that exist, providing potential buyers and investors with reliable data on wages, working conditions, water and electricity tariffs as well as brief histories of the industry and operating companies.
Activities