Improved foreign interest for ZITF 2014

The 55th edition of the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair to be held from 22-26 April 2014 has attracted an improved interest from foreign nations as compared to last`s conference, said Bhekithemba Nkomo, chairman of the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair Company a statement released last week.

"21 foreign nations have expressed interest so far which compares favourably with last year's closing total of 16 nations. 11 of these have actually reserved stands namely Bangladesh, China, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Italy, Malawi, Mozambique, Poland, South Africa and Zambia" said Nkomo He added that net exhibition space available for sale is about 51,000 square meters including hall space, pavilions and external sites. "Market response has been positive, over 80 percent of space has been booked so far and if the trend continues, we expect to sell all the space," he said.

The exhibition which will run under the theme "New Ideas to New Heights" is being conducted in a new enhanced way by the company. "Being the 55th edition, we are reinventing the way we do business with greater emphasis on digitalisation. On-line registration for business visitors is now open in preparation for the on-line matchmaking programme that will commence a month before the show, in addition to our website and social media platforms," said Mr Nkomo.

"We will be introducing a mobile application that will be compatible with all the mobile phone operating systems for exhibitor's lists, floor plans, event updates and alerts. WiFi will be available throughout the Zimbabwe International Exhibition Centre for the convenience of our participants," he added.