SME sector will benefit from the AfCFTA: Meyer

WINDHOEK, 01 AUG – Namibia’s small and medium enterprise (SME) sector will gain easier access to bigger foreign markets for goods and services through the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), SMEs Compete Director Danny Meyer has said.
In an interview with Nampa here on Wednesday, Meyer said the domestic market is small, which limits growth possibilities for many enterprises.
“Countries with much higher populations like Angola, Zimbabwe, Zambia and Malawi certainly pave the way for business growth, especially for small Namibian firms with export-ready products or services to offer,” Meyer said.
He added that SMEs Compete will develop and introduce a business skills honing training programme to encourage entrepreneurs around the country, especially those to whom it routinely provides business growth support.
Meyer said the programme will help entrepreneurs to gain knowledge on exporting procedures and foreign currency payment transactions.
“The aim of the programme is to ignite a spark of interest among entrepreneurs with an interest to grow business through exporting their goods and services,” he explained.
Enterprises like Miracle Arts and Crafts, IndigenousBatikDesigns and Dinapama Manufacturing, who have export-ready products, would gain a lot from access to foreign markets and the local SME sector would expand, Meyer noted.
According to the African Union, one of the main objectives of the AfCFTA is to expand intra-African trade through better harmonisation and coordination of trade liberalisation and facilitation and instruments across Africa’s Regional Economic Communities and across Africa in general.
(NAMPA)