2024 Annual Congress Speakers and Profiles
OFFICIAL OPENING DAY – WEDNESDAY 26 JUNE 2024
The official opening will include opening remarks from various authorities and the hosting institutions including the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, the Ministry of Provincial Affairs and Devolution, the Victoria Falls City Council, and the ZNCC Executives. To top it up, a Theme Speaker is expected to explain the theme for the 2024 Annual Congress to the benefit of all delegates. The Opening Day will be exciting as an update on the implementation of the 2023 Annual Congress Resolutions will be provided. The Official Opening will start at 1400 hours.
The Opening Day will be concluded later in the evening with a Welcome Cocktail and Dinner hosted by the Chamber at Boma Restaurant in partnership with a yet-to-be-revealed esteemed organization. The 26th of June is surely not to be missed.
Guest of Honour
![Hon. Nqobizitha Mangaliso Ndlovu](/images/2024/06/12/honndlovu.png)
Speakers' Lineup and Profiles
![H.E. Mr. Edward Kallon](/images/2024/06/12/h.e.-mr.-edward-kallo.jpg)
H.E. Mr. Edward Kallon
Mr. Kallon has devoted more than 30 years of his career to public service, working – both at the United Nations and externally – in complex emergency, transition, and development contexts in conflict and non-conflict settings across lower- and middle-income countries. At the United Nations, he most recently served as the Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria, following an assignment as Resident Coordinator in Jordan. He also held senior positions with the World Food Programme (WFP) in Bangladesh, India, Iraq, Somalia, and Uganda after starting his United Nations career as a United Nations Volunteer assigned to WFP in Afghanistan.
He is currently serving as the UN Zimbabwe Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator. Before joining the United Nations, Mr. Kallon worked in his home country as a socio-economist and community development coordinator for GTZMANR, a Bilateral Technical Cooperation Project, as well as an income generation project coordinator with a global non-profit, Plan International. He holds a master’s degree in development studies with a specialization in agriculture and rural development from the Institute of Social Studies in The Netherlands and a bachelor’s degree in agricultural education from Njala University College of the University of Sierra Leone.
![H.E. Mr. Edward Kallon](/images/2024/06/12/jobst-von-kirchmann.jpg)
H.E. Mr. Jobst von Kirchmann
Ambassador Jobst von Kirchmann is the Ambassador of the European Union to Zimbabwe, presenting his credentials to President E.D. Mnangagwa on 12 October 2022. Trained as a lawyer in Germany and France, he has a background in information management from Japan and strategic leadership. After a career in law, including roles as a judge, prosecutor, and lawyer, he transitioned to the European institutions. He started as an assistant at the European Parliament before working in the General Directorates for trade and the internal market of the European Commission.
Since 2002, Ambassador von Kirchmann has focused on the EU's external relations, holding various positions that have exposed him to regions worldwide. He served at the EU Delegation in Iraq and the Directorate General for International Cooperation and Development, where he was Deputy Head of the Information and Communication Department, Head of the Legal and Financial Department for Asia, and Head of the Department for Development Policy in Central Asia, the Middle East, the Gulf, and the Pacific. Prior to his current role, he was responsible for development policy in Southern Africa and the Indian Ocean. Ambassador von Kirchmann is also a teacher at several universities. He is married and has four children.
![H.E. Mr Wamkele Mene](/images/2024/06/12/wamkelemene.png)
H.E. Mr Wamkele Mene
H.E. Wamkele Mene is the Secretary-General of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat, elected by the 33rd Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of States & Government of the African Union. Previously, he served as Chief Director: Africa Economic Relations at the South African Department of Trade & Industry, acting as Chief Trade Negotiator for South Africa in the AfCFTA and Tripartite FTA negotiations. H.E. Mene also held the position of Director: International Trade Law & Investment Law at the Department of Trade & Industry, providing legal counsel on international trade and investment law.
He represented South Africa at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) from 2010 to 2015 and was elected Chairman of the WTO’s Committee on International Trade in Financial Services. Prior to his government roles, H.E. Mene worked for Wall Street-based law firms in London and Hong Kong. H.E. Mene is an internationally recognized expert in international trade law, international investment law, and international business law. He holds a Bachelor of Arts (Law) from Rhodes University, a Master of Arts in International Studies & Diplomacy from the School of Oriental & African Studies (SOAS), University of London, and an LL.M. in Banking Law & Financial Regulation from the London School of Economics & Political Science (LSE). In 2020, he was recognized as one of the top 100 most influential people of African descent in support of the United Nations International Decade of African Descent (2015-2024).
Women's Desk WECA
- Start
- 27-09-2024 18:00
- End
- 27-09-2024 22:00
- Description
- Golden Conifer
ZNCC Business Expo
- Start
- 23-10-2024 7:00
- End
- 25-10-2024 17:00
- Description
- Rainbow Towers Hotel
Mashonaland Golf Tournament
- Start
- 08-11-2024 7:00
- End
- 08-11-2024 16:30
- Description
- Chapman Golf Club
Business Review Conference & Survey Launch
- Start
- 06-12-2024 7:30
- End
- 06-12-2024 17:00
- Description
- Cresta Lodge Msasa