The 12th meeting of the IATF2021 Advisory Council, held virtually on 22 October 2021 and chaired by His Excellency Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, Chairman of the IATF2021 Advisory Council and former President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, reviewed progress on final preparations for the second Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF2021), which runs from 15 to 21 November 2021.
With 3 weeks to go before the fair’s opening in Durban, the Advisory Council has taken detailed stock of the state of preparations – noting a very satisfactory overall level of readiness as exhibitors, buyers, conference delegates and visitors from Africa and rest of the world rush to register.
The IATF2021 organisers also updated the Advisory Council on precautionary measures taken to safely accommodate all exhibitors, delegates, buyers and visitors.
The event is attracting more and more participation as the registration period draws to a close. During the first two weeks of October, over 3,500 registrations were received. More than 5,000 delegates from 95 countries, including 52 African countries, have already registered. Due to the high demand, the registration period was extended until 29 October 2021.
About the Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF2021)
Organised by the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) in collaboration with the African Union (AU) and African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) secretariat, the second Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF2021) will take place in Durban from 15 to 21 November 2021.
IATF2021 provides a platform to promote trade under the AfCFTA. It will bring together continental and global buyers and sellers, and will enable stakeholders to share trade, investment and market information; as well as trade finance and trade facilitation solutions designed to support intra-African trade and economic integration of the continent.
In addition to establishing business-to-business and business-to-government exchange platforms for business deals and advisory services, IATF2021 also operates IATF2021 Virtual – an interactive online platform that replicates the physical event. IATF2021 will also focus on Africa’s creative economy as well as the automotive industry with dedicated programmes.
A conference will run alongside the exhibition, and will feature high-profile speakers and panellists addressing topical issues relating to trade, trade finance, payments, trade facilitation, trade-enabling infrastructure, trade standards, industrialisation, regional value chains and investment.
