2 day event
GTR Africa Trade & Infrastructure Finance Conference 2015
London Mariott Hotel Grosvenor Square, London
October, 21, 2015
African trade finance community gather in London
Global Trade Review (GTR), the leading publication for the trade, commodity and export finance community, was delighted to host the inaugural Africa Trade & Infrastructure Finance Conference 2015, which took place at the London Marriott Hotel Grosvenor Square on October 21-22, 2015.
The two-day conference attracted over 240 business leaders and provide extensive networking opportunities for domestic, regional and international financial institutions, global corporates and SMEs, policy makers and specialist trade finance experts.
The event commenced with an opening address from Dr Benedict Okey Oramah, newly elected President of the African Export-Import Bank, followed by a keynote presentation from Razia Khan, Managing Director and Chief Economist for Africa at Standard Chartered Bank, outlining the African trade success story and highlighting varying approaches across differing regional markets. The day continued with various high level discussions featuring prominent corporates such as Huawei, Shoreline Energy, Oando, ABB, Nakumatt and Elephant Group.
The conference brought together a wealth of decision makers, including representatives from exporters and trading companies, banks, insurers, export credit agencies, legal experts, multilaterals, solution providers and non-bank financiers, attracting many local and international delegates from the European and African markets to discuss the development of the region’s trade potential.
“GTR has established a firm presence across Africa, through its market leading gatherings in several locations including South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana and Mauritius, highlighting a range of opportunities across a range of exciting and dynamic markets, ” said Jeff Ando, Associate Director and Head of Conference Production at GTR. “With London benefitting from a wealth of African financial experience and in many ways seen as a hub for the continent, we feel this event was perfectly placed to hold key discussions and provide an assessment of activities in the market over the last year.”
Topics for discussion included the trade risk environment, new developments in the Nigerian market following the recent elections, an examination of the nuances of the Francophone region, infrastructure challenges in sectors such as power and transportation, opportunities across the East African Community and the linkage between trade and development aid.
With so many high-level delegates in attendance, networking was a key feature throughout both days. With networking lunches, an evening drinks reception and specific networking platforms, there was ample opportunity for anyone serious about doing business in the region to create new business contacts and build relationships with the market’s main players.
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