A team from the African Development Bank Group (AfDB), comprising Ms Moono Mupotola, Division Manager; Mr Bleming Nekati, Chief Trade Finance Officer and Mr Jean-Guy Afrika, Trade Policy Analyst, visited the Secretariat on a mission to finalize the appraisal report for the Trading for Peace Project. The team held a meeting with the ASG (Administration), Ambassador Nagla El-Hussainy, above.

The AfDB through its Trust Fund has committed a total of US $950,000 to the ongoing Trading for Peace Programme (TfP). The ADB funds will leverage support that the programme has recently received from the German KfW bank. The Trading for Peace programme commenced in 2006 and it aims at consolidating peace by enhancing small scale cross border trade at the eastern borders of the DRC. Among the outputs of the programme is the installation of 10 Trade Information Desks (TIDs) which have been providing trade information to thousands of traders at the border area. There has been demand for additional trade information desks from respective Member States; and the funds will be used to install additional TIDs and also refurbish existing desks by providing electronic equipment and solar panels where electricity is not available.

Ambassador Nagla El-Hussainy expressed COMESA’s gratitude to the Bank for the support and expressed hope that the collaboration would yield results that can benefit the communities at the border areas.

While in Zambia the mission also held discussions with the Alliance for Commodity Traders in Eastern and Southern Africa (ACTESA) and the COMESA Cluster Programme on the soon to be launched AfDB Trade Finance Programme.