The Board of Directors of the COMESA Business Council (CBC) held a successful meeting in Nairobi, Kenya on the 25th of January 2010, during which a revised draft strategic plan was reviewed in order to map the way forward for the CBC. Six members, out of the seven COMESA Member State Board, attended the meeting at the Nairobi Safari Club. Mr. Said Omar Moussa, Chairman of the Djibouti Chamber of Commerce, is the current Chairperson of the CBC Board, with the Kenyan and Malawian Business Communities serving as first and second Vice-Chairs, respectively. Other Board members present were Egypt, Uganda and Zambia. Rwanda is the seventh serving Board Member. Other delegates included representatives from the COMESA Secretariat, ITC, USAID and COMPETE, COMESARIA, ACTESA, LLPI, FEMCOM and women's business associations, as well as SMEs and regional sectoral industrial associations.

Representatives from the COMESA Secretariat and the International Trade Centre (ITC) were also present to update the Board on the current strategic planning process, in relation to regional integration and the objectives of the Programme for Building African Capacity for Trade (PACT II). The Board expressed its satisfaction with the initiative undertaken by the COMESA Secretariat and ITC, to recruit a CBC Coordinator, Dr. Nalishebo Meebelo, who would facilitate the day to day activities of the Council, through funding from the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). This will ensure that the regional apex body is strengthened, sustainable and effective in its delivery of services to the COMESA private sector. Several issues highlighted during the meeting included the urgent need to set up a fully functional Secretariat, and to launch a membership recruitment drive. The Board endorsed a finalised fee structure, taking into account the diversity of the private sector. The Board further deliberated on plans for the next COMESA Business Forum and the Regional Trade Fair, both scheduled to take place in Swaziland in August 2010. The Board is keen to ensure that the CBC takes the lead and ownership of these two private sector events, held in the margins of the COMESA Heads of State and Government Summit.

The Board later presented the draft CBC strategy, to a wider regional private sector audience, at a two day meeting held on the 26th and 27th January 2010 at the Nairobi Safari Club. The Kenyan Secretary for External Trade, representing the Permanent Secretary for the Ministry of Trade, Republic of Kenya, urged the private sector to take the lead in enhancing economic development and reducing poverty in the region, and to use the CBC as a platform for sharing experiences, opportunities and best practices.

In a statement read on behalf of the COMESA Assistant Secretary General for Programmes, Mr. Stephen Karangizi, the CBC was reminded of its mandate to serve as an effective voice that articulates the private sector perspective, while galvanizing the interests of its stakeholders, including those of women and SMEs. The CBC was further encouraged to play its rightful role, commensurate with the expectations of the private sector and to participate fully in shaping regional trade related policy. In addition, ITC pledged its continued facilitative support to the CBC's strengthening process, while USAID through its COMPETE Programme, stands ready to also provide assistance within its mandate.

Delegates were enlightened on the structure, operations and aspirations of the CBC, as well as the benefits of being affiliated to the institution. The strategic plan was then discussed and revised by private sector representatives to inform the content of the final five-year CBC Strategic Plan expected to be ready for implementation by March 2010. The strategy was unanimously adopted by the meeting, as a private sector owned document.