Intra-African trade fair records $32.6bn in concluded deals
Afreximbank organised the trade fair, in collaboration with the African Union, and hosted by the government of Egypt. The pan-African trade bank said that the amount represented the value of 100 deals concluded during the fair. That number might rise as it did not include some bilateral deals among exhibitors which had not been recorded.
The bank said that the majority of the deals were in sectors of industrialization/export manufacturing ($6.2 billion); power ($6 billion); and financial services ($1.86 billion). Other key sectors included oil and gas; transport and logistics; heavy industry; mining; infrastructure; healthcare; and SME promotion.
The preliminary report also showed that there was a total of 1,086 exhibitors at the fair, with 45 countries having country pavilions. Five hundred and eighty-four companies were accommodated in country pavilions while 375 were in private sector stands. The creative industries had 36 participating exhibitors.
In addition to operating country pavilions, Egypt and Nigeria also had special country days which allowed them to enjoy a dedicated day during which they organized special programmes to showcase the business and investment opportunities in their countries.
The IATF2018 Conference, which ran alongside the trade fair, featured 42 sessions with 152 speakers, including Olesugun Obasanjo, Nigeria’s former president, who berated the country for its continued non-ratification of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) – the body under which the fair held.
Obasanjo urged Nigeria to urgently ratify its entry into AfCFTA, which he described as the future factor that would drive African transformation.
Afreximbank said the Virtual Trade Fair platform, which operated during the fair, attracted 700 total registrations, with the rooms being accessed more than 7,000 times and product information and market resources on the platform accessed or downloaded about 2,000 times. About 300 booths have been built on the platform, which will remain active after the IATF.
Meanwhile, the creative industries component of IATF2018 featured six workshops and also attracted six mural artists. It also featured eight mini runway shows and an event called “Fashionable Loud” which was a major attraction attended by many visitors.
The IATF 2018 ran from 11 to 17 December. It was aimed at promoting trade among African countries and at supporting the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement, which was signed by 44 countries in Kigali, Rwanda in March this year.