Judith Phiri, Business Reporter
ZIMBABWE’S leather industry took centre stage at the recently concluded Seventh annual Sadc Industrialisation Week (SIW), showcasing distinctive products that captured the attention of delegates and exhibitors from across the region.
The week-long event, which concluded on Friday in Harare, served as a prelude to the upcoming 44th Sadc Heads of State Summit, where Zimbabwe is poised to assume the chairmanship of the regional body. As the largest public-private platform and consultative body for regional industrialisation, this year’s SIW focused on promoting innovation to unlock opportunities for sustainable economic growth and development, aligning with the overarching goal of industrialising Sadc.
Leather sector players exhibition at the SADC Industrialisation Week 2024 (6)
The event in Harare attracted over 3 600 delegates and 267 exhibitors representing all 16 Sadc member states, underscoring its significance as a pivotal forum for collaboration and knowledge exchange. Zimbabwe received accolades from the Sadc Secretariat for hosting the most significant Industrialisation Week to date, commended for its meticulous organisation and execution.
Running under the theme “Promoting Innovation to Unlock Opportunities for Sustainable Economic Growth and Development: Towards an Industrialised Sadc,” the event was inaugurated by President Mnangagwa on Wednesday morning, setting the stage for a vibrant showcase of local and regional companies’ contributions to the industrialisation agenda.
Leather sector players exhibition at the SADC Industrialisation Week 2024 (6)
In an interview, Zimbabwe Leather Development Council (ZLDC) secretary, Mr Jacob Nyathi said they were impressed by value chain players that participated to make the SIW event a very special one.“Leather sector players made the value chain gain some notable national, regional and international recognition as you will note from some comments shared by some of our regional Sadc colleagues.
The unique collaborative display and fashion showcase that we staged together with the Fashion Council of Zimbabwe, Zimbabwe Clothing Manufacturers Association (ZCMA), Zimbabwe Textiles Manufacturers Association (ZITMA) and the Zimbabwe Leather Collective (ZLC) was a huge success worth considering doing at a larger scale possibly at regional or even at international level,” he said.
He said from Bulawayo, organisations that showcased under the ZLDC/ZLC organised exhibition and showcase were Millennium Footwear, Collet’s Safari and Taxidermy, Safari Leather, Prestige Leathers and ShoePack Company.
Mr Jacob Nyathi (right) speak to Botswana delegates, Mr David Mutasa (centre) and Mr Charles Marara (left) at one of the leather sector exhibition stand at the SADC Industrialisation Week 2024
Mr Nyathi said Zambezi Tanners showcased at SIW and also supported all the upcoming young designers with leathers that they used to make their creations for showcasing at SIW 2024.“Bulawayo Leather Cluster, Citywear Leather Cluster and Harare Leather Cluster exhibited under the Africa Leather and Leather Products Institute (ALLPI) stand as well as at the Sadc-Solidaridad Support to Industrialisation and Productive Sectors (Sips) stand.
While, Goodhope Leather Products exhibited on their own stand,” he added. He said from Harare, the participants that showcased their products were Moreda Leather, Rukanda Pride, King Leather (under the ZimTrade stand), Samuneti Leathers, Golden Hands, Wakaz Leather, Tobias and Innocent Enterprises (all participating under the Ministry of Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) Development).
Leather sector players exhibition at the SADC Industrialisation Week 2024 (2)
Mr Nyathi said Triple Tee Footwear actively participated under the ZLDC/ZLC banner and they were indebted to them for their generous donation towards the Guest of Honour gift during the SIW official opening ceremony and also towards the upcoming Sadc Summit of Heads of State.
He said: “The young and upcoming designers that participated in this showcase did not disappoint either, these were Dorcas Shoko and Nompumelelo Samambagwa who had some of their creations being showcased at the fashion show. Also, Nicollette Chirambaguhwa from Bulawayo had some of her bags displayed at ZLDC/ZLC stand.”
Mr Taruvinga Owen ( Wakaz Leather) sharing notes with Mr Mudungwe the Executive Director for ALLPI at the SADC Industrialisation Week Expo in Harare
Mr Nyathi said they were grateful to ALLPI for availing an exhibition stand for clusters and SMEs, while the partnership they have forged with the Standards Association of Zimbabwe (SAZ) and logistics partner FedEx who helped transport some of the exhibition items from Bulawayo.
“We are proud of the collaboration we put together among complementary sectors of leather, textiles, clothing and fashion. We also participated in the hosting of the Gala Dinner, Fashion Show and Sadc Sqam Awards on Thursday, which had great attendance,” he said.
