Harare Agricultural Show roars into life

The 2018 edition of the Harare Agricultural Show roared into life yesterday at the Exhibition Park.

The annual show is the premier event organised by the Zimbabwe Agriculture Society (ZAS) for the national facilitation and promotion of agricultural development.

The show attracts over 500 exhibitors and 180 000 people annually.

It presents a unique business opportunity for national and regional organisations.

The show, which is running up to Saturday, is being held under the theme “Field to Industry”.

Zimbabwe Agricultural Society chief executive Dr Anxious Masuka said there were 575 exhibitors, representing a 14 percent jump from last year’s figures.

He said the number of organisations exhibiting and the area taken up by exhibitors increased by over 22 percent from 2015 to 2018, and by 14 percent in 2018 compared to 2017.

“Commercial exhibition space taken up is expected to increase from 79 730 square metres in 2017 to 85 730 square metres in 2018, a 7,5 percent increase,” said Dr Masuka.

Commercial exhibitors are drawn from 18 business segments.

Exhibitor numbers at the Harare Agricultural Show have been surging from 460 in 2015 to 496 in 2015.

Last year, the country’s biggest show recorded 503 exhibitors.

Yesterday, there were few show goers and most exhibitors confirmed that business enquiries were low.

Some of the exhibitors said they expected business to start picking from Wednesday.

Some parents who brought their children on the first day said there was low activity as some exhibitors were still putting last touches to their  stands.

Mrs Pamela Joka of Kuwadzana said she took her children for the show yesterday to avoid congestion later when it goes a gear up.

“The first days are good for children,” she said.

“We visited several stands and my children were thrilled by the Zimbabwe Defence Forces stand and livestock sector.”