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EIPA TO HOST HANDICRAFT FAIR ON FRIDAY

By Qondile Ntiwane | 2021-09-22

The Eswatini Investment Promotion Authority (EIPA) will on Friday host a Handicraft Fair. The fair will be hosted on BuyEswatini.com, EIPA’s online shopping mall and online exhibition venue.

The event, which will run for 21 days, is aimed at promoting local handicraft retailers, and will be hosted in order to allow local handcraft businesses a platform to showcase their unique products to potential customers.

The handicraft fair will open with a free webinar on 24 September, which will host a series of speakers who will launch the official proceedings of the handicraft fair. EIPA said yesterday that Industry experts from the private and public sector would form part of the programme including speakers from the ministry of commerce industry and trade, a representative from SWIFT and other relevant organisations, including EIPA.

The free Handicraft Fair webinar will also be live on Zoom. The login details are as follows, Log in ID: 894 5595 1192 and passcode: 552168.

EIPA Head of Trade Bongani Ntshangase explained that the Handicraft Fair formed part of the Eswatini Virtual Trade Fair (EVTF) launched in late 2020. He said the EVTF was set up in response to the need for safe digital spaces to host events due to the COVID-19 pandemic while also allowing local industry, such as the handicraft industry in this case, to continue showcasing their capability despite limitations on physical exhibitions.

“As one of Eswatini’s leading export goods through tourism, the handicraft industry was largely sustained by tourists coming into the country and buying wares which they would then take back to their homes. restrictions “In recent months, however, with the imposed travel restrictions many businesses have taken a hard hit.

The Handicraft Fair is an attempt to give these retailers support to continue displaying their goods to an international market despite the sharp decrease in international visitors to the country, while also offering them the permanent benefit that they can get from registering their goods on BuyEswatini.com,” he said He stated that The Eswatini Virtual Trade Fair offered exhibitors the benefit of a virtual 3D exhibition booth, product activations and demos, on demand video and file uploads/ downloads and online visitor registration and profiling among other features.

“It also offers exhibitors a large number of benefits including 24/7 access to the exhibition space regardless of your location across the globe, intelligent matchmaking capabilities due to online client registration and minimal setup costs for exhibition spaces.

“During times when there are no live EVTF exhibitions on BuyEswatini.com, the virtual platform will continue to operate as a permanent online shopping mall of goods and services offered by traders from all over Eswatini,” he said.

exhibitions

In conclusion Ntshangase said the EVTF and exhibitions such as the Handicraft Fair, EIPA sought to present Eswatini’s trade potential to both domestic and international business people, while also creating linkages for increased export and domestic trade.

“Eswatini has trade agreements with SADC, COMESA, AGOA and The Economic Cooperation Agreement (ECA) signed with Taiwan and The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCTFA), all of which make it easier for local retailers to launch their goods into a diverse pool of markets with favourable trade conditions,” he said.

To register on BuyEswatini.com or for the handicraft fair, retailers can contact trade@sipa.org.sz.

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