Trade and growth nexus in Zimbabwe: quantifying the economic implications of joining the Tripartite Free Trade Area: paper presented at the Midlands State University and University of Venda conference on Economic Integration, Entrepreneurship and Sustainable Development held at Midlands State University, Zimbabwe on the 14th-16th October, 2015

Abstract

Zimbabwe, just like many other developing countries, engages and participates in various regional trade arrangements (RTAs) as one building block in a key strategy towards trade-led growth. This paper sought to analyse the medium to long-range implications of Zimbabwe joining the Tripartite Free Trade Area (TFTA) from that perspective. The empirical evidence shows that a more open trade regime under the TFTA contributes more to the country’s aggregate economic growth than under the SADC and COMESA FTAs only. However, the study also notes that the level of protectionism towards third parties in the country is still very high and exceptions to free trade with regional trade partners are frequent. Moreover, joining a FTA is not an end in itself. In order to enjoy and exploit the full benefits from its regional integration efforts, Zimbabwe needs to fully utilize its existing trading arrangements under the SADC and COMESA agreements