Tunis, the capital of Tunisia, is set to host the “COMESA Investment Forum 2024 (CIF)” on June 27.
Organized by the Regional Investment Agency (RIA) of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), the event will bring together over 250 key figures, including ministers, policymakers, private sector representatives, and officials from investment promotion agencies across more than 21 African countries. The event is held under the auspices of COMESA.
Heba Salama, CEO of the COMESA Regional Investment Agency, announced in a statement on Wednesday that this year’s CIF is the first to be held in Tunisia since the country joined COMESA in July 2018.
The forum aims to encourage intra-COMESA trade and investment, introduce the Tunisian business community to the investment and trade opportunities available in various COMESA countries, and highlight the facilitation services provided by COMESA and its institutions in investment and trade.
Salama emphasized that the forum serves as a strategic gateway to the COMESA region’s markets, unleashing its trade and investment potential.
It provides a platform for policymakers and the private sector to collaborate closely and take decisive actions to enhance and accelerate development across the region through cross-border investment and trade flows.
The forum will spotlight diverse commercial opportunities across COMESA member states, encouraging cross-border trade and investment.
It also offers a unique chance for Tunisian business leaders and investors to meet high-ranking officials from COMESA investment promotion agencies and learn about the various services offered by COMESA’s secretariat and institutions to facilitate trade and investment.
Salama affirmed that the COMESA Regional Investment Agency is committed to supporting Africa’s economic unity. She called on all investment promotion agencies in COMESA, major investors, and companies from the organization and Tunisia to discuss and explore mutual trade and investment deals.
She highlighted her commitment to supporting business leaders and investors to foster strong economic growth and regional cooperation.
Tunisia is expected to benefit significantly from the vast COMESA market, which grants access to over 640 million people and a combined GDP of $1 trillion.
The “COMESA Investment Forum 2024” will see participation from numerous international, African, and Tunisian organizations and entities, including the European Commission, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Tunisia’s Ministries of Economy and Planning, and Trade and Export Development, the Tunisian Union of Industry, Trade, and Handicrafts, the Investment Promotion Agency, and various other Tunisian, regional, and international organizations. High-ranking officials from COMESA, including Assistant Secretary General for Programs Ambassador Mohamed Kadah, and heads of 21 investment promotion agencies from COMESA member states, along with business association leaders and investors from various strategic sectors in Tunisia and the COMESA region, will also attend.
The forum aims to enhance investment and trade opportunities within the COMESA region, bringing together top policymakers and decision-makers for direct government-to-government (G2G) and government-to-business (G2B) meetings, as well as business-to-business (B2B) meetings between private sector representatives and investors from across the COMESA region. The focus will be on strategic sectors such as trade, agriculture, pharmaceuticals, renewable energy, and information technology, enabling participants to create valuable connections and identify potential business and partnership opportunities across various sectors.
COMESA, the largest regional economic bloc in Africa, comprises 21 countries with a combined population of over 640 million and a total GDP exceeding $1 trillion.
Member states include Egypt, Burundi, Comoros, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Kenya, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Rwanda, Seychelles, Somalia, Sudan, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.