By Deborah Madeya:
Malawi Stock Exchange-listed Illovo Sugar Malawi is platinum sponsor for Malawi’s participation at the third Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF2023), which will take place between November 9 and 15 in Cairo, Egypt.
The fair is intended to provide a unique platform for facilitating trade and investment information exchange in support of increased intra-African trade and investment, especially in the context of implementing the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA).
It is being organised by Afreximbank, in collaboration with the African Union Commission (AUC) and AfCFTA secretariat.
In Malawi, the processes for participation are being spearheaded by the Ministry of Trade and Industry through the Malawi Investment and Trade Centre (MITC) and Export Development Fund (EDF).
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Speaking on Thursday in Blantyre after receiving a dummy cheque, MITC Director of Investment Innovation and Facilitation Stella Ng’oma said the fair will be an ideal platform for Malawi to court and create opportunities for Malawian businesses to grow.
“We had a number of private sector entities but we want to increase their participation. That is why we have increased our mobilisation this year to grow the participation of the private sector,” Ng’oma said.
She thanked the company for the support and called on local businesses to take part.
Illovo Sugar Malawi Managing Director Lekani Katandula said the fair would help in generation of forex, which is the main issue currently.
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“We expect to see many Malawian businesses participating in this fair and this will help in generating forex,” Katandula said.
The event will attract businesses as well as political decision makers.
IATF brings together continental and global players to showcase and exhibit their goods and services and to explore business and investment opportunities in the continent.
It also provides a platform to share trade, investment and market information with stakeholders and allows participants to discuss and identify solutions to the challenges confronting intra- African trade and investment.
In addition to African participants, the trade fair is open to businesses and investors from non-African countries interested in doing business in Africa and in supporting the continent’s transformation through industrialisation and export development.
