COMESA Ministers Push for Deeper Regional Integration and Digital Growth
The 46th COMESA Council of Ministers Meeting convened in Lusaka with a renewed call to accelerate digitalisation, strengthen regional value chains and drive sustainable economic growth across member states.
Ministers responsible for Commerce, Trade, Industry and Foreign Affairs reviewed progress made in regional integration over the past year, receiving updates from sectoral meetings held to date.
Delivering the keynote address, Vice-President W.K. Mutale Nalumango highlighted the critical role of regional cooperation in the modern global economy. She said 21st-century globalisation had reinforced the importance of regional integration as a pathway to sustainable and inclusive development.
Held under the theme “Leveraging Digitalisation to Deepen Regional Value Chains for Sustainable and Inclusive Growth,” the meeting focused on accelerating digital transformation, enhancing competitiveness and promoting seamless trade facilitation.
Mrs Nalumango highlighted Zambia’s strides in digital advancement, citing over 6.5 million internet users and a national digital penetration rate of 31.2%. She further commended the successful rollout of the COMESA digital retail payment platform between Zambia and Malawi, describing it as a major step towards secure and efficient regional payment systems.
She urged member states to prioritise physical and digital connectivity, value chain development and competitiveness, while stressing the need for innovative financing models to support the COMESA Medium-Term Strategic Plan for 2026–2030.
“Africa cannot be developed through over-reliance on development partners. We must strengthen our own funding mechanisms to deliver on the 2026–2030 Medium-Term Strategic Plan,” she said.
Mrs Nalumango, represented by Minister of Defence Hon. Ambrose Lufuma, also applauded the region’s positive growth trajectory, with intra-COMESA trade rising from US$2.3 billion in 2000 to US$14 billion in 2024, despite global economic volatility.
Addressing the meeting, COMESA Secretary General Chileshe Mpundu Kapwepwe said the bloc had made decisive progress in digitalisation and trade facilitation to ease persistent integration bottlenecks.
She cited the introduction of the electronic Certificate of Origin and the rollout of national single window systems among key milestones aimed at boosting trade efficiency and predictability.
The meeting reaffirmed COMESA’s commitment to advancing a digitally-driven, interconnected and competitive regional economy.
