Potential Job Creation through Regional Trade in Agro-processed Products

About the Presenter:

Mmatlou Kalaba a research fellow at TIPS, specialising in trade research. He also carries out TIPS' capacity-building initiatives in the Southern African region, providing training courses on applied analytical and methodological tools. He currently holds a position in the Department of Agricultural Economics at the University of Pretoria. Some of the projects at university of Pretoria include The Joint Agribusiness Department of Agriculture Forum for Africa (JADAFA) under the auspices of Department of Agriculture, Forestry and
Fisheries (DAFF) and the Agriculture Business Chamber (ABC) as well as the Bureau for Food and Agricultural Policy (BFAP).

Current and previous responsibilities and projects include bilateral and multilateral trade analyses, SADC TRdae Database, the SADC Mid-Term Review, tariff and non-tariff analyses, reviews of tariff policies and related competitiveness issues and the Southern African Trade Database.

Mmatlou was previously with the National Agricultural Marketing Council (NAMC) and the National Department of Agriculture (NDA) as an economist and senior economist, respectively. His responsibilities included an investigation into impact of deregulation on the citrus industry and transformation in the agricultural sector. He also participated in the Food Price Monitoring Committee that investigated high food prices, the impact of deregulation on the wheat and citrus industries and transformation in the agricultural sector, and was involved
in developing regional research capacity.