Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s Ethiopian International Office recently organised a roundtable in Nairobi, Kenya, which brought together representatives from the East African Community, EAC, to discuss and review opportunities for cooperation and investment in the agri-business industry for Dubai businesses and their East African counterparts.

The 2nd East Africa and Dubai Agribusiness Roundtable meeting was attended by Abdul Razak Mohammed Hadi, UAE Ambassador to Kenya, and representatives of the Kenya National Chamber of Commerce, East African Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture, the Private Sector Federation Rwanda and the Chambers of Burundi, Tanzania Zanzibar and Uganda.

The roundtable reviewed and discussed cooperation in the field of agribusiness industry in light of Dubai traders’ focus on the food security issue as the emirate imports more than 85 percent of its food requirement from overseas markets thus opening the doors to enhanced cooperation between investors from both the sides.

Expressing the UAE’s stand in terms of economic relations with East Africa, Hadi, said: "The UAE is fully committed to increasing trade and economic development in the region and we have done this by offering excellent logistical, and export/import free zones while helping African companies to carry out their trading activities with global traders through the country."

During his participation in the roundtable, Omar Khan, Director, International Offices, Dubai Chamber, informed that the African continent is a strategic partner for Dubai’s business community, hence Dubai Chamber’s focus is on opening international offices in the continent to support the private sector growth.

He also informed about the presence of three Dubai Chamber international offices in the continent which jointly explore lucrative investment opportunities in the most promising sectors of the African market including the agricultural sector.

Khan further stressed on the importance of holding dialogues with partners in the African continent, stating that the discussions and the exchange of views and experiences are key factors in overcoming the obstacles to two-way trade and in establishing economic partnerships in rewarding sectors. He called upon the participants of the roundtable to explore the agribusiness opportunities in their country, and to build strong partnership with Dubai Chamber to apprise the UAE business community with available opportunities and how to use them to their advantage.

Dubai Chamber’s International Office in Ethiopia is one of the first three Chamber offices in the African Continent which was opened as part of the organisation’s strategy to stimulate the emirate’s business environment in promising markets of the world while attracting foreign direct investment to the country.

Source : WAM