The Southern African Customs Union (Sacu) said on Tuesday it was still committed to negotiations with India over a delayed preferential trade agreement (PTA). “We are still confident we will come to an agreement with India,” Sacu deputy director for trade negotiations Rolf-Joacim Otto told a Sapa correspondent on the sidelines of Botswana’s global expo business conference in Gaborone. First launched in 2007, the PTA seeks to increase trade between Sacu and India by giving each party’s products and services preference over other regions. Sacu is made up of Botswana, Lesotho, South Africa, Swaziland, and Namibia.

The Africa-China Poverty reduction and Development Conference concluded on Wednesday (November 19) with African and Chinese officials today calling for a deepening of the partnership between the two partners. Co-hosted by the Government of Ethiopia, the African Union Commission, the International Poverty Reduction Centre in China and the United Nations Development Program, the conference explored the current state of development work in Africa and identified key areas for joint initiatives. The conference was attended by around 200 participants, including government officials from African countries and China, as well as experts and scholars from the private sector, civil society and international organizations. 

The Chinese government expresses readiness to support the establishment of African Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (ACDCP) which is believed to be a milestone for the development of African public health system. Chinese Ambassador to Ethiopia Xie Xiaoyan told journalists yesterday that the Chinese national health delegation and Centre for Disease Control and Prevention is supporting Africa on how to establish African CDC at the desired time. The ambassador said that Chinese intellectual support will be availed in the future to help AU and African countries to establish the Center as quickly as possible. He said that this is another reflection of China's strong commitment to enhance cooperation with African brothers and sisters in the fight against Ebola epidemic and the building of Pan- African public health system.

The Namibian Organic Association (NOA) recently attended the Regional Training Workshop on Marketing and Extension support to organic farmers and practitioners. The workshop, organised by the African Union, was held in Gaborone, Botswana.Talking about the value of the course, NOA Chairperson Manjo Smith said there is high demand in Namibia for organic agricultural produce as people prefer food that is healthy, nutritious and free from harmful pesticides or Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs). She said however that demand exceeds supply, so there is a need to strengthen organic capacity in the agricultural sector. She said that training opportunities are invaluable in this regard.In addition to providing training on organic farming operations, the workshop covered natural management techniques for pests, marketing of produce and compliance with organic standards.Said AU Department of Rural Economy and Agriculture Policy Officer, Jonathan Nyarko Ocran, development of organic agriculture is a component of the 2014 AU Year of Agriculture and Food Security.

Vietnam wants to build closer ties and step up multilateral cooperation with Zimbabwe, according to a declaration made by the Vietnamese ambassador to Zimbabwe, Le Huy Hoang, when presenting his credentials to the Zimbabwean President, Robert Mugabe, on Thursday, 31 August, in the capital Harare. The Vietnamese ambassador briefed the Zimbabwean President on the socio-economic development of his country, its wish to build closer ties with the rest of the world, and recent developments in the East Sea. The pair discussed measures to intensify bilateral cooperation, in particular with regard to the economy, trade, health and agriculture.

Economic exchanges and trade between Cameroon and India are estimated at FCFA 250 billion a year, according to the Indian High-Commissioner to Cameroon, A R Ghanashyam. According to this diplomat, the economic partnership between the two countries is likely to be diversified and increased given the joint projects under consideration by the two countries, since although Cameroon is “the country with which Indian trade has increased the most in the Central African region in recent years, the potential for this trade cooperation remains huge” and underexploited.

Aiming to boost bilateral trade between the two countries, South Africa, on Thursday, evinced interest in food processing and agriculture sectors in India. In the first ever 'South Africa Week', the country showcased the technologies related to food processing and agriculture sector.  The weeklong seminar commenced in Mumbai from September 9-10, 2014 and then moved to Gurgaon on September 11-12, 2014. South Africa's agriculture minister Senzeni Zokwana in a statement said, "A number of significant leaders from the trade, business and academic fraternity having turned up and partaken in the mutual discussions, we are looking forward to fulfil our agenda to create lucrative business and investment opportunities with India."

Hailing Natuman as an old friend of the Chinese people, Xi said the Vanuaaku Party, of which Natuman is a founding member, was the first political party in the Pacific island region to establish relations with the Communist Party of China. He added that the party has made a great contribution to China-Vanuatu ties. Xi said the Chinese side respects the Vanuatu people's choice of development path and will back the island country's efforts to safeguard its rights and advance sustainable development.

The cost of labor in China is going up, so Chinese manufacturers are moving to Africa, and they’re playing all the angles. Sun Qiaoming is a trader from Jiangsu. He operates his import-export business on the Eastern coast of China, where there is plenty of space for a man with his drive and skills to prosper. Already fairly successful, he recently set his sights beyond his country’s borders. “There’s been much talk about the Chinese Dream in the past few years, but I have an African Dream.” he said. “African gold will fill my next bucket of gold.”

Nigeria's agric sector is fast becoming the toast of global investors, as not less than 3000 of them are planning to berth investments in the sector. The businesses, industries and other investors would be joining Nigerian and international policymakers, agribusiness leaders, farmers, technologists and investors that will be gathering in Lagos in November for the Agra Innovate, a ground-breaking exhibition and conference being organised by the convener of the largest agric exhibition in Brazil, Informa.