Lusaka, Zambia – The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) has pledged full support to the World Bank’s Great Lakes Trade Facilitation and Integration Project (GLTFIP), which runs until June 30, 2028. The initiative aims to boost cross-border trade, particularly for small-scale traders, many of whom are women and youth, by reducing costs, improving infrastructure, and strengthening cross-border value chains.
On Tuesday, March 3, 2026, at the COMESA Secretariat in Lusaka, Assistant Secretary General for Programs Ambassador Dr. Mohammed Kadah met with the newly appointed World Bank GLTFIP Task Team Leader, Dr. Marie Christine Apedo Amah, to discuss ways to enhance trade facilitation partnerships. The meeting focused on strategies to ensure a smooth flow of goods, traders, and traffic across borders.
Ambassador Kadah congratulated the World Bank for supporting regional cross-border trade and urged all divisions to prepare necessary documents and inputs for the restructured GLTFIP. “This includes lessons learned from the initial project and potential improvements, particularly in capacity building and effective communication with cross-border traders in their native languages at specific borders,” he said.
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