EUROPEAN UNION DELEGATION TO ZIMBABWE SHOWCASES EXPANDED PRESENCE AT 2024 ZITF

This year, the EU spotlights its Global Gateway campaign with the theme "EU WITH YOU, TINEMI, SILANI." The focus will be on the two Team Europe Initiatives; Green and Climate Smart Agriculture (GCSA) and Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment (GEWE).

"The EU's Global Gateway initiative exemplifies our values-based approach to building trusted connections that benefit people and our planet," stated EU Ambassador Jobst von Kirchmann. "Zimbabwe's National Development Strategy (NDS1) goals include greener, climate-resilient agricultural practices. Our aim is to support Zimbabwe's efforts to improve productivity while minimizing environmental impact. Furthermore, empowering women across social, economic, and political spheres is key to our shared vision."

The EU-Zimbabwe Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) and the EU's Global Gateway offer a framework for increased trade and investment. The EPA offers a great opportunity to Zimbabwean companies who have the possibility to export to the EU on a 100% duty-free, quota-free basis. The agreement offers Zimbabwean companies the possibility to modernise and transform their manufacturing processes through the importation of machinery duty-free from Europe. With a trade volume of 700 Million USD, and a positive trade balance in favour of Zimbabwe, this is a significant area of cooperation as the EU represents Zimbabwe's fifth-largest trading partner and number one destination for horticultural exports.

In a common space, the EU will feature information about the European Union's trade and investment opportunities in Zimbabwe alongside other EU Member States, this year being Italy, France, The Netherlands, Sweden, Germany and Romania. The stand aims at becoming a meeting and exchanging point between Zimbabwe and the EU trade and investment stakeholders where visitors can access information on: export requirements, support to agriculture machinery imports, technical assistance, lending facilities with the European Investment Bank as well as locating European business partners and exploring new markets. The potential for growth of trade between Zimbabwe and the EU is substantial, and visitors to the #TeamEurope stand will gain valuable insights into maximizing the benefits of current free trade arrangements and much more.

The EU is committed to contribute to a conducive to investment, innovation and inclusive growth in Zimbabwe. This collaboration has seen the European Investment Bank (EIB) advancing private sector facilities to the tune of €40 million to local banks in the past three years and more facilities are in the pipeline. This recognises the positive steps that Government of Zimbabwe together with its partners is taking to address the issue of debt and arrears which has so far prevented Zimbabwe from accessing sovereign lending. The EU is playing a key role in this process as co-chair along with the Ministry of Justice of the - Governance track, the conclusion of which will create also a more conducive business environment that is able to attract investment in infrastructure projects.

Ambassador von Kirchmann also highlighted the EU's dedication to fostering a positive business environment: "We are committed to working with Zimbabwe to promote investment, innovation, and inclusive growth. The European Investment Bank's support for the private sector, along with our role in Zimbabwe's good governance initiatives, pave the way for the brighter economic future we all envision."

The EU's presence at ZITF 2024 underscores a broad, collaborative effort to accompany Zimbabwe towards its ambition of becoming an upper-middle income society by 2030. The "EU WITH YOU, SILANI, TINEMI" Campaign reflects the EU-Zimbabwe partnership dedicated to a sustainable and prosperous future for all.

Entities and projects present at the EU stand at 2024 ZITF:

Annex:

For information, other #TeamEurope partners and projects that visitors can find at the #TEAMEUROPE stand include:

Global Gateway

Global Gateway, is a European Union strategy to boost smart, clean and secure links in digital, energy and transport sectors and to strengthen health, education and research systems across the world. The EU and its member states aim at unlocking 150 billion EUR investment to support Africa's sustainable development through the Global Gateway. Here's how Zimbabwe benefits:

Kariba Dam Rehabilitation Project: Through the Global Gateway, the EU is contributing 113 Million Euro to rehabilitate the Kariba Dam.

Health: The European Union and Member States are big supporters of the Global Fund.

Team Europe's commitment to the Global Fund is more than €4.3 billion for the period 2023-2025. Zimbabwe has received $504.7 M to tackle HIV, TB, and Malaria. This funding is allocated for 2023-2025 and supports Zimbabwe's continued progress toward ending the three diseases as public health threats.

Education: Zimbabwe joins the Global Partnership for Education (GPE), receiving over US$32 million to improve access to quality education, especially for girls and learners with disabilities. Additionally, the Erasmus+ program expands opportunities for Zimbabwean students and educators through scholarships and academic exchange.

Digital Transformation: A major investment in fiber-optic infrastructure will soon connect Zimbabwe to neighbouring countries. This will provide high-speed internet to schools, hospitals, and government institutions. The project, connecting Zambia through Victoria Falls passing through Bulawayo to Rutenga then heading towards Mozambique, is part of a larger regional effort, enhancing secure and high-speed internet connectivity.

#TeamEurope Initiatives

The European Union (EU) and its 27 Member States have a long history of supporting Zimbabwe's development, with over 2.1 billion EUR provided in aid for the last 15 years. This collaboration of the EU, EU Member States joined by Switzerland is known as "Team Europe," aims to streamline development efforts and maximize their impact.

Current Team Europe portfolio in Zimbabwe: Approximately 590 million EUR. Humanitarian Support (since 2020): Over 34 million EUR. Team Europe's support aligns with Zimbabwe's goals for becoming an upper-middle-income country by 2030. Key initiatives include:

- Gender Equality & Women's Empowerment: 251 million EUR in ongoing projects

- Greener & Climate Smart Agriculture: 211 million EUR in ongoing projects

Humanitarian Aid

The European Union is also there when help is most needed to stand side by side with Zimbabweans. Since 2020, the EU through ECHO has allocated over 34 million EUR in humanitarian assistance in Zimbabwe. Main aid consisted on food and nutrition assistance, including for urban areas, protection (incl. for returning migrants), education in Emergencies, disaster preparedness linked to environmental health and lately, cholera response.

EIB funding

The EU has been collaborating with Zimbabwe in business through private sector development and encouraging investment flows into the country. In the past three years, the European Investment Bank (EIB), which is the world's largest international financial institution, extended Private Sector Facilities amounting to 40 MEUR and signed three credit lines with three Zimbabwean private banks namely CABS, First Capital Bank, and NMB Bank.

These loan facilities which are extended to local financial institutions benefit the private sector in that:

• Compared to normal market rates, the facilities had favourable interest rates;

• The facilities had a long tenure of 7 years, which what industry prefers;

These foreign currency facilities have benefited export-oriented enterprises, notably in the horticulture, transport and tourism sectors.

The following projects will be present at the stand this year:

GREEN, CLIMATE SMART AGRICULTURE AND TRADE

Resilience Building through Agro-ecological Intensification in Zimbabwe Project (RAIZ) - It is a research project that supports government in the development and implementation of scientifically tested agroecological approaches, which will improve agricultural production and resilience to climate change in Zimbabwe. It is implemented in Murehwa and Mutoko. The project is fully funded by the EU and implement by CIRAD.

Enhancing the Resilience of Vulnerable Households in Zimbabwe (ERVHIZ)-This EU funded project that seeks to increase the resilience of vulnerable households to food crises and climate change by increasing sustainable crop and livestock production through low-input agroecological production practices, improved post-harvest management techniques and improved rangeland management.

Fish and Aquaculture For Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific (Fish4ACP) - is a five-year programme co-funded by the EU (EUR 40 million) and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). It is co-led by the EU and the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS) that aims to tackle some of the underlying challenges to sustainable fisheries and aquaculture. In Zimbabwe it is implemented by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).

Seeds for the future (COSPE - SEFF) - The project lead by COPSE supports smallholder farmers in 25 constituencies in three districts (Chiredzi, Mwenezi and Masvingo) in adopting sustainable agricultural models. These models allow the construction of local and differentiated food systems, socially and economically fair and sustainable from an environmental point of view, which, by increasing resilience factors. The project is funded by the Italian agency for Development Cooperation (AICS).

LIPS - ZIM (Livestock Production Systems in Zimbabwe) -The EU funded project aims to increase the adoption of climate relevant innovations in livestock-based production systems and improve surveillance and control of livestock diseases in Zimbabwe's agro-ecological regions IV & V. The project is implemented in six provinces in Zimbabwe. International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) is collaborating with International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development (CIRAD) and University of Zimbabwe (UZ).

Intellectual Property Rights and Innovation Project in Africa (AFRIPI-EUIPO) - is an international cooperation project funded and directed by the European Union, co-funded and implemented by the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) in collaboration with the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO.) The overall objective of AfrIPI is to facilitate intra-African trade and African and European investment. It specifically aims to create, protect, utilise, administer and enforce Intellectual Property Rights across Africa, in line with international and European best practices and in support of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and the African Union´s Agenda 2063.

BIODIVERSITY AND WILDLIFE CONSERVATION

Sustainable Wildlife Management (SWM) -The Sustainable Wildlife Management (SWM) Programme is an initiative of the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS), funded by the European Union (EU) and co-funded by the Fonds Français pour l'Environnement Mondial (FFEM, French Global Environment Facility) and the French Development Agency (AFD). SWM is implemented in Zimbabwe by Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and French Agricultural Research Centre for International Developmnet (CIRAD). This is a major global initiative that aims to improve wildlife conservation and food security. It develops innovative, collaborative and scalable new approaches to conserve wild animals and protect ecosystems, whilst at the same time improving the livelihoods of indigenous peoples and rural communities who depend on these resources. In Zimbabwe the project is focused in the Mucheni Community Conservancy (CC) in Binga district.

GENDER EQUALITY AND THE FIGHT AGAINST GENDER BASED VIOLENCE (GBV)

Musasa Project: Musasa works to prevent and respond to Gender Based Violence (GBV), providing relief to survivors of GBV in Zimbabwe through a multidimensional approach. The project, mainly funded by the EU operates from five regional offices: Harare, Bulawayo, Gweru, Mutare and Masvingo.

HEALTH

Health Resilience Fund (HRF)- The Health Resilience Fund (HRF 2022-2025) is a multi-donor health programme (cira $90 m) implemented by UNICEF, UNFPA and WHO. Donors are EU, UK and Ireland. The primary objective of the HRF is to support basic primary healthcare while complementing Government of Zimbabwe (GoZ) funding to ensure the continuation of essential health services that improve reproductive, maternal, newborn, child, and adolescent health and nutrition outcocomes. The HRF contributes to the TEI on Women's Empowerment and Gender Equality.

It is the successor to the Health Development Fund (HDF) 2016-2021, which led to an impressive reduction in maternal and child mortality. Contributing to this reduction was HDF investment in SRHR services including family planning, access to GBV response services, and cervical cancer screening.

YOUTH AND CULTURE

EU Youth Sounding Board (YSB) - Zimbabwe, a group of young people who advise the EU Delegation in Zimbabwe on youth participation and empowerment in EU external action. The Youth Sounding Board aims to create a real, fundamental, long-lasting change in how the EU engages with young people in its development cooperation.

CreativeACTIONs 2 by Culture Fund - is an EU funded project designed to provide financial and technical support to artists and creatives in all Zimbabwe's ten provinces. Through this project the EU hopes to provide a breakthrough for emerging artists, especially young women and men in Zimbabwe. The government is our partner in this initiative that seeks to incubate creatives and helping them to realize their potential. Culture Fund who implements the project, is an active social transformation agent working within communities through investments in innovative and sustainable creative sector capacities.

For further information on EU funded projects, please visit:

https://www.eeas.europa.eu/eeas/projects_en?s=129&f%5B0%5D=project_site%3AZimbabwe

For any media enquiries, please contact:

Alexandra Maseko, Press and Information Officer, Delegation of the European Union,

[email protected], +263 242 338158 to 64