The COMESA and the Commonwealth Secretariats co-hosted a regional workshop on trade policy capacity on 14-15 December 2009 in Lusaka. The workshop was held under the banner of the COMESA Hub & Spokes project — jointly funded by the Commonwealth and European Commission that was initiated in 2004 and has seen the deployment of trade policy experts across the ACP regions, including Eastern and Southern Africa.

With the current Hub & Spokes project set to expire at the end of 2010, there is strong support from member countries in the region for a successor programme.

In his opening address, the COMESA Secretary General, Mr Sindiso Ngwenya, highlighted the benefits of the Hub & Spokes project to the region — specifically the immense value of having independent experts embedded in a number of trade ministries and the COMESA Secretariat to assist with the day-to-day trade policy challenges faced by member countries.

The aim of the Lusaka Workshop was to brainstorm on how a possible Hub & Spokes ‘Phase II’ programme can best address the region’s trade policy capacity needs beyond 2010.

“your discussions over the next two days will be instructive as to how the second phase of this project can continue to be relevant to the needs of participant Member States. Despite the success of the project thus far, I believe improvement is always possible; this workshop and successive discussions are an opportunity to design a more perfect template for the execution of the project’s objectives” noted Mr Ngwenya regarding the importance of the meeting.

Speaking at the same function Commonwealth Secretariat’s Hub & Spokes Project Manager, Mr Nimrod Waniala said it that it is vital that future trade capacity programmes are demand-driven. He assured the participants of Commonwealth Secretariat’s commitments to the programme

‘Resources are not infinite, and the Commonwealth Secretariat is committed to working with its project partners to ensure a successor programme is as effective as possible and well-targeted to the specific needs of both the government and non-government sector.’

The Commonwealth Secretariat has recruited an expert team of consultants from Ticon Holdings Inc to assist with the Hub & Spokes Phase II planning and design exercise.

‘We have held consultations with over 120 government and non-government stakeholders in more than 15 ACP member countries since September 2009’, reported Ticon Holdings Team Leader, Mr Marcis Esmits.

More than 20 delegates representing eight COMESA member States participated in the Lusaka Workshop, in what was just one of a series of five regional workshops held across the ACP region over the last month.

‘Discussions were vibrant and frank and delegates had a great opportunity to debate some of the constraints to trade policy in COMESA member countries... as well as consider how a future Hub & Spokes programme could be structured to build capacity in these areas’, Mr Waniala said.

Ticon Holdings Inc will report to the Commonwealth Secretariat with a proposal for a Hub & Spokes Phase II design concept in early February 2010. It will then be crunch time for the Commonwealth Secretariat to work with its project partners—including the European Commission, Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie, the COMESA Secretariat and other ACP regional integration organisations—to consider the design options and implement an agreed Phase II programme by January 2011.

‘COMESA is committed to working with its partners to secure funding for a successor programme in Eastern and Southern Africa,’ said the COMESA Secretary-General.