First time exhibitors share their experience at ZITF

Exhibiting during the 62nd Edition of the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair was a dream come true for a rural woman like me.

This was a summary of the national fair according to Rebecca Nyoni who is one of the 71 first time exhibitors.

Besides the colorful stands displaying different types of products, the event brought in so many activities and opportunities especially for women.

In seperate interviews during ZITF women said the experience has afforded them a chance to know more about economic opportunities available.

Nyoni said she had decided to form a group with 47 other women farmers from Ntabazinduna which sells produce collectively to make ends meet.

“As a first timer, the experience has been awesome and am grateful that my dream to be an exhibitor finally came true. Besides the interaction I have with clients explaining how our business works, I also took time to visit other stands to have an appreciation of what other organisations are doing for women, ” said Nyoni.

“We are yet to benefit from the banks in our communities but we are happy that at least we now have information on how we can access the funds for economic independence.”

In an interview with Rebecca Nkomo a representative from Phakamani Simukai, she highlighted that being a first-time exhibitor has opened opportunities for the cooperative which consists of 74 women who grow vegetables, rear chickens, and produce detergents. The cooperative is an initiative by the Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services.

“We are glad to be participating at the ZITF, we have seen ideas from other exhibitors and this will challenge us to grow. The co-operative has been helping us as women to empower one another and secure funds for our children’s school fees.

“We have 300 Sasso chickens, and we harvest over 30 buckets of tomatoes from our one-acre field. However, we are constantly faced with transport challenges especially when we want to sell our produce to people or outlets that are in Bulawayo as we are located in Ntabazinduna. This is why we now just sell to nearby areas,” she said.

Esnath Hove from Hwange said exhibiting for the first time was challenging but worth it.

“I have learnt so much within these past three days. Firstly, we got here with our detergents with no business cards and it was quite embarrassing to explain why and how that happened. I have also learnt the importance of social media presence in business, most people were asking if they could follow us on different platforms, ” said Hove.

“I also got a chance to visit the Zimbabwe Gender Commission because I feel their work is not visible in our communities back home. Now that I understand their operations, I will gladly share the information with other women after this event.”

Local activist and community development officer Dominica Muringi said ZITF kept improving in terms of giving women a chance to grow their business and gain knowledge on programs currently being done to foster development. There was a great improvement even amongst exhibitors and we hope that ZITF will open doors for them so that they make profit and grow their businesses,” said Muringi.