Botswana on Tuesday launched the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Trade Related Facility programme.
The SADC Related Trade Facilty is mechanism devised by SADC and the European Union to provide financial aid and technical support to SADC member states so that they can implement commitments made under the SADC protocol on Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) between EU and SADC member states.
Speaking at the launch, Minister of Trade and Industry Bogolo Kenewendo explained that the main objective of the trade facility is to ease international trade administration, competition policy issues, custom administration as well as addressing technical barriers to trade and trade development through electronic commerce.
She said for Botswana, at least Euro 2 600 000 has been availed to implement various interventions.
One of the project project to be funded under the SADC trade related facility programme by Botswana is the development of e-commerce strategy.
According to Kenewendo, in these economic hard times, a programme like the SADC Trade Related Facility, whose overall objective is to achieve a high level of compliance and implementation of EPA is a welcome development.
“The programme was initially planned to be completed at the end of September 2019. We are delighted that the programme has been extended by a further two years from October 2019 up to September 2021 to allow us complete implementation of all our activities,” she said.
KO/as/APA