INAUGURAL AGRI-BUSINESS AND ECO-TOURISM FORUM, ANGOLA-SOUTH AFRICA

CAPE TOWN - Africa’s second largest oil producing country, the Republic of Angola, is open and ready for business! The new leadership, under the newly elected President, João Lourenço, is determined to develop a strategic and strong relationship with South Africa as a business partner and considers this goal among its top priorities, given the historic political ties between the two countries. Angola, being rich in natural resources, presents many lucrative opportunities for bilateral trade arrangements between the two countries. That is why both the Angola Private Investment Agency and Promotion of Exports (AIPEX) and CACIAAS Angola South Africa Chamber of Commerce and Industry will co-host a premier bilateral event in Cape Town in order to promote trade and investment in Southern Africa. The inaugural Agri-Business and Eco-Tourism Forum, Angola-South Africa, will be held at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) on 26 and 27 September 2019. Kilson Kalanda, Managing Director of CACIAAS, says the aim of this strategic initiative will be to develop a Private Investment Forum that will promote economic and social relations between South Africa and Angola in order to promote and facilitate foreign private investment for agri-business and eco-tourism projects in Angola and South Africa. “This exciting high-level conference should prove to be the perfect base from which to launch cross-border economic and social relations in the agricultural and eco-tourism sectors of both countries since it is intended to attract major role-players in this area. Intended as a noteworthy networking platform, it will not only promote and facilitate foreign private investment for agri-business and eco-tourism projects as well as future business relationships between Angola and South Africa, but it may inadvertently become a gateway event for access to other markets in the Southern African Development Community (SADC),” says Kilson. The event is expected to attract major role-players in the agricultural and eco-tourism sectors of both countries and representation from more than 50 Angolan based companies. The conference intends to bring together at least 200 key decision makers, in order to create a platform for peers to interact, learn from leading thought leaders and find the best solutions to spur food security and raise awareness of, not only the beauty of the African continent, but also of the great opportunities that eco-tourism brings. Among the dignitaries attending are Engo Marcos Nhunga (Angolan Minister of Agriculture and Forestry), Dr Angela Bragança (Angolan Minister of Tourism), Dr Licínio Vaz Contreiras (Chairman of the Board of Directors of AIPEX), Dr Victoriano Ferreira Nicolau (CACIAAS President) and several other top notch keynote speakers. According to Kilson, CACIAAS and AIPEX aim to ensure that this event will receive maximum attention by being promoted extensively in both countries. The conference will be presented by the esteemed business-to-business (B2B) publishers Cape Media Corporation (CMC), one of South Africa’s oldest and largest B2B event organisers. The company’s MD, Robert Arendse, is very excited about the upcoming conference and the role that it will play in establishing relationships between the various role players. As the media partner for this exciting new event, CMC will provide extended avenues for CACIAAS and AIPEX in order to get the message across. “The idea is to create a solid platform that will provide networking opportunities and connect the various role players in order for business between the two countries to flourish. This conference will not only be the perfect platform to do that, but it will also provide the opportunity for knowledge sharing and will highlight the areas of need in order to promote cross border trade and investment. “Over the years, we have built strong relationships with many South African companies that might be interested in doing business with and in Angola. Our role in this partnership will be to help bring together the key decision makers shaping Africa’s agricultural and eco-tourism economic future. Further to this, we will also be publishing a new high level quarterly trade and investment magazine for CACIAAS in order to keep the conversation going across the borders. The magazine will be published in English for the South African audience, and in Portuguese for Angolan readers,” says Arendse. The organisers say anyone in business or in government who are eager to source solutions, generate business and who want to understand how they can be part of a thriving African continent, should be attending the conference. Parties who are interested in attending and participating in the conference can contact Venesia Fowler venesia@capemedia.co.za.