THE Zimbabwe International Trade Fair (ZITF) Company is planning an exhibition with a difference this year that will see schoolchildren barred on the single public day set aside, while conferences, meetings and the prize-giving ceremony will be limited and attended strictly by invitation, Sunday News has learnt.
Last week ZITF, organisers of the country’s biggest annual
trade expo announced that the show will make a return this year and will be
held in July for four days instead of the usual five days, under tight Covid-19
mitigation protocols.
The exhibition was suspended last year after the country
imposed a lockdown following the outbreak of Covid-19 in March.
This year’s exhibition will run from 20 to 23 July under
the theme, “Showcasing the New Normal for Business and Industry: Realities and
Opportunities.”
ZITF company chairman Mr Busisa Moyo told Sunday News that
preparations have started with major consultations underway with various arms
of Government especially those in charge of health to determine how some of the
programmes will be held while at the same time observing Covid-19 protocols.
“We are still consulting and working that out with relevant
health departments and more details will follow in due course,” he said.
Although Mr Moyo could not elaborate, Sunday News
understands that there has been a recommendation to bar children on the single
public day.
Three days have been set aside as business days while only
one day instead of two, has been set aside as a public day.
In the past, ZITF had not only been an exhibition on trade
but had become a major family event where the two public days were
characterised by thousands of children in most cases accompanied by parents
flocking to the Exhibition Centre where there will be a lot of entertainment.
The exhibition was also held during school holidays to allow the children to
attend.
However, according to this year’s school calendar during
the days, schools will be open for the second term.
According to the re-arranged school calendar released by
the Government for this year, the second term will run from 28 June to 10
September. Sunday News gathered that even on the business days, attendance will
be mostly by invitation while conferences including the prize-giving ceremony
will accommodate limited guests.
The Government has stipulated that gatherings are only
limited to 50 people to minimise the spread of Covid-19.
The Government has also said people must always follow
other measures to minimise the spread of Covid-19, such as social distancing,
use of hand sanitisers and regular washing of hands.
A visit to the exhibition centre also revealed the need to
urgently start preparations as tall grass has covered most of the spaces.
In a statement on Thursday, Mr Moyo said over the course of
the next few days teams will be in touch with exhibitors, buyers and other key
stakeholders with information on the show’s operational guidelines.
He also noted that stakeholders should expect to see new
features which include heightened health and safety protocols, modified venue
layouts, more digital and hybrid meeting platforms, and an emphasis on numbers
management.
Mr Moyo said this year’s exhibition will present an ideal
platform for stakeholders to converge and rebuild businesses while navigating
the contours of the new normal which has become largely buttressed by
technology and navigate new regional and global developments.
He also noted that with the planned voluntary mass
vaccination for Bulawayo, the company hopes that sufficiently high numbers
would have been vaccinated to achieve some level of Covid-19 herd immunity in
time for the show.
“Our industry has been heavily disrupted by the pandemic
and it is only through the support of industry partners such as our exhibitors
and service providers that we will emerge more resilient and offer our events
as primary agents for ‘post-pandemic’ economic recovery and renewal,” he said.
While the ZITF traditionally draws thousands of local and
foreign delegates, bringing in wider business benefits mainly to the tourism
sector and down the value chain, this year’s edition will be taking place under
health and safety regulations provided to reduce exposure risk. Meanwhile, as
at 22 April (Thursday), Zimbabwe had 38 018 confirmed Covid-19 cases, including
35 073 recoveries and 1 555 deaths. To date, a total of 308 071 people have
been vaccinated against Covid-19. Sunday News
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