It's Day Two the Annual COMFWB Trade Fair. Learn more
Day Two of the Annual COMFWB Trade Fair.Learn more

second annual
regional trade fair
& Gala dinner

22nd - 24th September 2021

Lusaka, Zambia
New Opportunity
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Request for proposal for feasibility study of pre-construction work for COMFWB HQ Business Complex
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Latest News

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March 16, 2026
Elevating Excellence: The 7th COMFWB Regional Trade Fair and Business Conference heads to Tunis- TUNISIA from the 1st to 3rd July 2026 !

We are thrilled to announce that the ๐Ÿ•๐ญ๐ก ๐‚๐Ž๐Œ๐…๐–๐ ๐“๐‘๐€๐ƒ๐„ ๐…๐€๐ˆ๐‘ ๐š๐ง๐ ๐๐”๐’๐ˆ๐๐„๐’๐’ ๐‚๐Ž๐๐…๐„๐‘๐„๐๐‚๐„ ๐Ÿ๐จ๐ซ ๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ฌ ๐ฒ๐ž๐š๐ซ ๐Ÿ๐ŸŽ๐Ÿ๐Ÿ” ๐ฐ๐ข๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐›๐ž ๐ก๐ž๐ฅ๐ ๐ข๐ง ๐“๐ฎ๐ง๐ข๐ฌ, ๐“๐”๐๐ˆ๐’๐ˆ๐€ ๐Ÿ๐ซ๐จ๐ฆ ๐ญ๐ก๐ž ๐Ÿ๐ฌ๐ญ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ญ๐ก๐ž ๐Ÿ‘๐ซ๐ ๐‰๐ฎ๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐Ÿ๐ŸŽ๐Ÿ๐Ÿ” The theme for this year : "๐‘ฌ๐’™๐’‘๐’‚๐’๐’…๐’Š๐’๐’ˆ ๐‘ฐ๐’๐’•๐’“๐’‚-๐‘จ๐’‡๐’“๐’Š๐’„๐’‚๐’ ๐‘ฏ๐’๐’“๐’Š๐’›๐’๐’๐’”: ๐‘ซ๐’Š๐’ˆ๐’Š๐’•๐’‚๐’ ๐‘ฐ๐’๐’๐’๐’—๐’‚๐’•๐’Š๐’๐’ ๐’‚๐’” ๐’‚ ๐‘ช๐’‚๐’•๐’‚๐’๐’š๐’”๐’• ๐’‡๐’๐’“ ๐‘ฐ๐’๐’„๐’๐’–๐’”๐’Š๐’—๐’† ๐’‚๐’๐’… ๐‘บ๐’–๐’”๐’•๐’‚๐’Š๐’๐’‚๐’ƒ๐’๐’† ๐‘ช๐‘ถ๐‘ด๐‘ฌ๐‘บ๐‘จ ๐‘ด๐’‚๐’“๐’Œ๐’†๐’• ๐‘จ๐’„๐’„๐’†๐’”๐’”" is structured around interconnected pillars that reflect the current priorities and opportunities for women entrepreneurs in the COMESA Region ยป ------------- Nous sommes ravies dโ€™annoncer que la "๐Ÿ•๐ž๐ฆ๐ž ๐…๐Ž๐ˆ๐‘๐„ ๐‚๐Ž๐Œ๐Œ๐„๐‘๐‚๐ˆ๐€๐‹๐„ ๐ž๐ญ ๐‚๐Ž๐๐…ร‰๐‘๐„๐๐‚๐„ ร‰๐‚๐Ž๐๐Ž๐Œ๐ˆ๐๐”๐„ ๐๐ž ๐ฅ๐š ๐‚๐Ž๐Œ๐…๐–๐ ๐ฉ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐œ๐ž๐ญ๐ญ๐ž ๐š๐ง๐งรฉ๐ž ๐Ÿ๐ŸŽ๐Ÿ๐Ÿ” ๐ฌ๐ž ๐ญ๐ข๐ž๐ง๐๐ซ๐š ร  ๐“๐ฎ๐ง๐ข๐ฌ, ๐ž๐ง ๐“๐”๐๐ˆ๐’๐ˆ๐„, ๐๐ฎ ๐Ÿ๐ž๐ซ ๐š๐ฎ ๐Ÿ‘ ๐ฃ๐ฎ๐ข๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ž๐ญ ๐Ÿ๐ŸŽ๐Ÿ๐Ÿ” Le thรจme de cette annรฉe est : ยซ ๐‘ฌ๐’๐’‚๐’“๐’ˆ๐’Š๐’“ ๐’๐’†๐’” ๐’‰๐’๐’“๐’Š๐’›๐’๐’๐’” ๐’Š๐’๐’•๐’“๐’‚-๐’‚๐’‡๐’“๐’Š๐’„๐’‚๐’Š๐’๐’” : ๐’'๐’Š๐’๐’๐’๐’—๐’‚๐’•๐’Š๐’๐’ ๐’๐’–๐’Žรฉ๐’“๐’Š๐’’๐’–๐’† ๐’„๐’๐’Ž๐’Ž๐’† ๐’„๐’‚๐’•๐’‚๐’๐’š๐’”๐’†๐’–๐’“ ๐’…'๐’–๐’ ๐’‚๐’„๐’„รจ๐’” ๐’Š๐’๐’„๐’๐’–๐’”๐’Š๐’‡ ๐’†๐’• ๐’…๐’–๐’“๐’‚๐’ƒ๐’๐’† ๐’‚๐’– ๐’Ž๐’‚๐’“๐’„๐’‰รฉ ๐’…๐’– ๐‘ช๐‘ถ๐‘ด๐‘ฌ๐‘บ๐‘จ ยป. Ce thรจme s'articule autour de piliers interconnectรฉs qui reflรจtent les prioritรฉs et opportunitรฉs actuelles pour les femmes entrepreneures de la rรฉgion COMESA

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March 13, 2026
Empowering ethiopian women entrepreneurs through digital transformation

25 Women. 4 Days. Infinite digital possibilities. The COMFWB Ethiopia Chapter & Ethiopia Chamber of Commerce successfully concluded our Digital Marketing & E-Commerce training (March 9-12). From content creation to global branding, these entrepreneurs are now ready to dominate the 21st-century economy

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March 11, 2026
Paving the Way for Inclusive Trade: Inception Meeting on the Non Tarriff Barriers project and Publicโ€“Private Dialogue launches in Mchinji

Today at Mchinji! We successfully launched our first Inception Meeting & Publicโ€“Private Dialogue (PPD) today, March 16th, at the Malawi-Zambia border!By bringing together Gov reps, COMFWB officials, and women/youth traders, weโ€™re co-creating solutions to crush Non-Tariff Barriers and lower trade costs. From maize to soya beans, weโ€™re making agri-food trade faster and fairer across the COMESA corridors. 2,000+ traders, 5 borders, 1 goal: Inclusive Prosperity. #TradeTransformed #WomenInBusiness #Mchinji #COMESA #AGRA

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March 11, 2026
Empowering the Future: COMFWB ignited action on International Womenโ€™s Day

On March 10, 2026, the Lifestyle Boutique in Lilongwe Malawi, transformed into a vibrant hub of advocacy and ambition as COMFWB hosted a high-level program to celebrate womenโ€™s achievement during the Womenโ€™s month . Under the official theme, "Rights. Justice. Action. For all Women and Girls," and the global campaign, "Give to Gain," the event brought together regional leaders, policymakers, and entrepreneurs.

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February 25, 2026
COMFWB Malawi and NABW present landmark procurement survey to the Minister of Industrialization, Business, Trade, and Tourism

COMFWB Malawi and NABW recently engaged the Minister of Trade to push for fairer access to public procurement. We presented a strong case for policy changes, specifically requesting that the MSME Order 2020 be revised to reserve clear allocations for women, youth, and PWDs. The Ministry has officially welcomed these findings and expressed readiness to implement our recommendations. Great progress for women entrepreneurs!

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February 23, 2026
Lโ€™Entrepreneuriat fรฉminin en action : Un รฉlan de succรจs ร  lโ€™ AFAB (Association des femmes d'affaires de Burundi)

Incredible energy at the AFAB event! On Feb 19, Burundiโ€™s women entrepreneurs gathered to turn inspiration into impact. From informal to formal, we are building a prosperous future through solidarity and strategic action. Every member is now an ambassador for change!

Our results in numbers

Our results in numbers

10,000+

Jobs created

Through our programs and initiatives, COMFWB has contributed to the creation of over 10,000 jobs. These job opportunities have a meaningful impact on local economies and the livelihoods of individuals, advancing our mission of women's economic empowerment.

$50M

Investment facilitation

Over the past five years, COMFWB has successfully facilitated over $US50 million in investments for women-led businesses across the COMESA region. This substantial financial support has driven economic growth and empowerment for women entrepreneurs in our network.

50%

Membership Increase

Since our inception, we have achieved a 50% increase in membership across the various COMFWB chapters, demonstrating our growing impact and outreach within the COMESA region.

100,000+

Women-owned businesses empower

COMFWB has trained over 100,000 women, equipping them with essential business skills, cross-border trade knowledge, and other tools necessary for success. These women are now empowered to navigate the complexities of entrepreneurship and cross-border commerce, contributing to economic growth and regional integration.

1,500+

Cross-border collaborations

COMFWB has facilitated 1,500 cross-border collaborations among women entrepreneurs in the COMESA region. These collaborations have led to increased trade, knowledge sharing, and economic opportunities, fostering regional integration and empowerment.

2,500+

Women Entrepreneurs Supported by Incubators

COMFWB has enabled 2,500 women entrepreneurs to access essential business support services through partnerships with business incubators. This initiative has provided women with valuable resources and guidance to enhance their business ventures and overall economic success.

About us

Who Are We

The Comesa Federation of Women in Business (COMFWB) is a COMESA institution which was established in July 1993 in Zimbabwe with the endorsement of the Authority which is made up of Heads of States and Governments of the COMESA member states.

COMFWB acts as a forum for the exchange of ideas and experience among women entrepreneurs; an instrument through which the appropriate portion of COMESA Women in Development Programmes are implemented; a forum for network among women entrepreneurs and an instrument for encouraging women to set up or expand existing enterprises.โ€

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About us

Testimonials

Catherine Olab
Farmer
Tangakona Commercial Village, Busia - Kenya

I thank God for COMFWB for opening our minds through the training offered to us. I have benefited very much from this training. I am now able to train other groups and also other trainers on value addition for the cassava produced here in Busia.

Maureen sumbwe
Chief Executive Officer
ZFAWIB -Zambia

The hard work by the women in business in Zambia is now yielding results especially with the help coming from stakeholders like COMESA, COMFWB and ZAM.

Our Partners