The 13th Annual General Meeting of the Association of Regulators for Information and Communications for Eastern and Southern Africa (ARICEA) was held on 12 and 13 June 2025 in Lilongwe Malawi highlighting the importance of Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) across the region. Delegates and regulators acknowledged the rapid expansion of ICT access, which is…
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COMESA Secretariat held a regional capacity building workshop for Member States on the implementation of the revised COMESA Regulations and Non-Tariff Barriers (NTBs) Elimination and Working Procedures. The workshop was held virtually from 11 – 12 June 2025. Director for Trade and Customs Dr Christopher Onyango described the workshop as timely and essential to enhance…
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Central banks in the region have been urged to adopt the use of the Basel III Post Crisis reforms to strengthen resilience and stability of member countries financial systems. since COMESA Monetary Institute (CMI) Director Dr Lucas Njoroge made the call, given the vulnerability of the region’s economies to the external shocks – such as…
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Noting the need to facilitate and enhance small-scale cross-border trade, the Government of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) signed an Interministerial Decree on 10 March 2025 to enable the implementation of the COMESA Simplified Trade Regime (STR) on its borders with neighbouring COMESA countries. The DRC shares borders with four COMESA countries Burundi, Rwanda,…
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Members of the Programme Steering Committee for the European Union funded Institutional Capacity Building Programme (ICBP) at COMESA Secretariat and EU Delegation in Zambia met in Lusaka to review progress in implementation of the Programme. Funded under the 11th European Development Fund, the initiative continues to be a cornerstone in COMESA’s efforts to strengthen institutional…
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Malawi is scheduled to hold general elections on 16 September 2025 to elect a President, Members to the National Assembly and representatives Ward Councils to serve for a five-year period. The 2025 elections come after the previous elections in 2019 that were initially nullified by the Supreme Court. The Court besides the nullification of elections…
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Fifty staff from Central Banks in twelve COMESA countries have been trained in understanding the complex interaction between monetary policy and fintech. The comprehensive training will enable staff to provide advice for effective policy responses to the challenges and opportunities presented by fintech in the COMESA region. Organised by the COMESA Monetary Institute, the virtual…
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COMESA has launched the World Bank-funded Inclusive Digitalization for East and Southern Africa (IDEA) Programme which aims to empower 180 million people with internet access and provide digitally enabled services to 100 million people over the next eight years. Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Technology and Science of Zambia, Dr. Brilliant Habeenzu, launched the programme alongside, World…
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Preparations for the development of COMESA’s 2026–2030 Medium-Term Strategic Plan (MTSP) have commenced with a two-day retreat for management and technical staff in Lusaka, held on March 24–25, 2025. The retreat’s agenda focused on reviewing the performance of the current 2021–2025 MTSP, identifying successes, challenges, and key lessons to inform the next five-year plan. Leading…
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Most Member States do not compile high-frequency measures of gross domestic product (GDP). If they do, the estimates come with a considerable lag, yet policy decisions need to be made often, particularly when major shocks such as COVID-19 pandemic or climate related shocks have occurred. This has inspired the COMESA Monetary Institute to come up…
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