Export Promotion and Industrial Policy in COMESA Region

Many countries, especially developing nations, concentrate on protecting domestic producers by encouraging production of import substitutes and import competing goods. Such a development strategy, coupled with high import duty, target to avoid competition from cheap foreign products and the protection of domestic producers. This chapter aims at examining the factors hindering export growth and ways to promote export growth and the industrial policy to be adopted. It has been observed that development of substitutes and import competing goods enables local producers to supply domestic demand at an efficient price. However efficient development also means supplying abroad and enhancing value-addition to the exported products (developing nations mainly export primary products which are agro-based). The study identified export growth to be affected by regional integration, time efficiency, foreign currency levels, infrastructure, exchange rate, labour earnings, inflation, natural disasters and women participation