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- To help members to manage the impact of Covid-19 pandemic, the COMESA bloc has developed an online portal
- The measure comes at a time when steps are being taken by member states to close their borders
To help members to manage the impact of Covid-19 pandemic, the COMESA bloc has developed an online portal to exchange information on availability of essential products within the region. The measure comes at a time when steps are being taken by member states to close their borders to curb the spread of the virus that has severely impacted cross border trade.
COMESA Secretary-General, Chileshe Kapwepwe, stated that the objective of the portal is to connect buyers to suppliers of essential goods and promote intra-COMESA trade. The Portal will host and link up suppliers and buyers by uploading the products in demand and supply. For using this facility, suppliers must be registered companies in their home countries. The companies have to register on the platform and open an account to be vetted by the governmental focal points in the ministry that coordinates COMESA activities in their country. The account will be activated after the Ministry approves the request. The procedure is set up to ensure the integrity of the companies.
The portal is expected to support small-scale cross-border traders and SMEs to get access to markets and link producers, sellers and buyers. Further, the successful implementation of the online platform is expected to be an important step towards realization of COMESA Digital Free Trade Area initiatives.
COMESA has launched a strategy in combating Covid-19 which has identified the need to strengthen openness, coordination and collective approach by regional countries in facilitating the movement of goods and services amidst restrictive measures. It also provides safeguarding existing trade and investments.
