VP Alupo in Tanzania for Inaugural AfCFTA Conference on Women and Youth in Trade

Vice President Jessica Alupo arrived in Tanzania on Sunday to attend the AfCFTA Conference on Women and Youth in Trade, which started today and ends on September 14 at the Julius Nyerere International Convention Center in Dar-es-Salaam.

She was received on arrival by Ambassador Liberata Mulamula, the  Minister of Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation of Tanzania, and Uganda’s High Commissioner, Col (Rtd) Fred Mwesigye at the Julius Nyerere International Airport.

The AfCFTA Conference on Women and Youth in Trade is being convened under the patronage of Samia Suluhu Hassan, the President of Tanzania and Champion of Women and Youth in Trade under the African Continental Free Trade Area. (AfCFTA).

The Conference will be held under the theme “Women and Youth: The Engine of AfCFTA Trade in Africa”, and will provide a platform for women and youth in trade, policymakers, development partners, financiers, and other key stakeholders on the continent to discuss in-depth perspectives on women and youth in trade.

The overall objective is to develop policy proposals for the draft Protocol on Women and Youth in Trade. The Conference is also expected to design concrete solutions that enhance the ability of women and youth to take advantage of opportunities offered by the AfCFTA.

The Vice President who is accompanied by the Minister of Gender, Labour and Social Development Betty Amongi Ongom will participate in panel discussions aimed at promoting Women in Business, particularly in the Small and Medium Enterprises(SMEs) in critical sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing (clothing and textiles) and services (especially tourism), informal trading, and professional services in which women and youth are predominantly engaged, must be supported to thrive. 

Other high-level panelists who will take part in these deliberations include Joyce Hilda Banda, former President of Malawi; Jewel Howard Taylor, Vice President of Liberia and Monique Nzanzabaganwa, Deputy Chairperson of the African Union Commission.