Tunisia hosts COMESA Investment Forum (CIF24) with the participation of 21 States and Regional and International Organisations

Tunis 19 June 2024:

The COMESA Regional Investment Agency (RIA), will inaugurate the COMESA Investment Forum (CIF 2024) on 27^th June, in Tunis, Tunisia. This high-level forum offers participants an unparalleled platform for promoting trade and investment within the COMESA region.

The forum is a business-to-business (B2B) and government-to-business (B2G) gathering, bringing together leading policymakers with captains of industry, financiers, major industrialists, and investors from across the COMESA region, focusing on strategic sectors: Agribusiness, Pharmaceutical, Renewable Energy, IT, among others. Over 200 participants are expected during the forum to advance trade and investment across the COMESA region.

This year’s edition takes place against an important backdrop with Tunisia, having joined COMESA in July 2018, offering a strategic gateway to the region’s extensive market. The theme for this year, “Unleashing Potential: Cross-Border Trade and Investments,” reflects the need for policymakers and the private sector to collaborate more closely and take decisive actions to advance and fast-track development across the region through enhancing cross border investment and trade flows.

Senior officials from the COMESA Secretariat, including the Assistant Secretary General for Programmes, Amb Dr. Mohamed Kadah, and heads of 21 Investment Promotion Agencies from COMESA Member States are participating. Heads of business associations, business leaders and investors from various strategic sectors in Tunisia and the broader region are also in attendance.

CIF 2024 aims to spotlight the diverse business opportunities across COMESA Member States, encouraging cross-border trade and investments. It fosters an environment where business leaders from the region can explore and seize these opportunities.

Tunisian business leaders and investors will engage with senior officials from COMESA Investment Promotion Agencies (IPAs) to learn about the various services offered by the COMESA Secretariat and its institutions to facilitate trade and investments.

Participants can look forward to keynote speeches and panel discussions that delve into critical topics related to cross-border trade and investment. The forum provides ample networking opportunities through dedicated spaces for B2B, B2G, and government-to-government (G2G) meetings, enabling participants to create valuable linkages and identify potential business and partnership opportunities across various sectors.

Attendees will gain valuable insights from the COMESA Secretariat, institutions, and National Investment Promotion Agencies about the business opportunities within the COMESA region, while engaging with over 150 leading industrialists, policymakers, financiers, and project owners from COMESA, creating a fertile ground for new business partnerships and collaborations. Tunisia is to benefit from the region’s extensive market, facilitating access to a population of over 640 million people and a combined GDP of $1.0 trillion.

Speaking about the forum, Heba Salama, CEO, COMESA Regional Investment Agency, is looking forward to welcoming the Tunisian business community to CIF 2024: “With its 21 member states, COMESA is at the forefront of promoting economic unity across Africa. I would like to encourage both our COMESA Investment Promotion Agencies and leading investors and businesses from Tunisia to discuss and explore joint trade and investment transactions. We are committed to working closely with business leaders and investors to foster robust economic growth and regional cooperation.”

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 About COMESA:

COMESA, Africa’s largest Regional Economic Community, encompasses 21 Member States with a population exceeding 640 million and a combined GDP of $1.0 trillion. Notified as a Regional Trade Agreement (RTA) to the World Trade Organisation in 1995, COMESA continues to work towards becoming a full Economic Community, fostering both internal and external trade.