OVERVIEW
The inaugural UK-Francophone West and Central Africa Trade and Investment Forum took place on Wednesday 19th October at Merchant Taylors Hall in Central London.
This major intergovernmental and private sector summit was convened by DMA, DIT and UKEF and featured plenary sessions, vertical and geographic panels, deal rooms and a series of bilateral meetings between government and industry.
On the day, eight countries including the West Africa power houses of Senegal and Cote d'Ivoire joined Central Africa's Cameroon, the diverse economies of Benin, Niger and mineral-rich Guinea and the Commonwealth’s newest member states Gabon and Togo.
The Forum has been lauded as a breakthrough summit for the region and for the UK. Such was the interest, that 500 businesses, governments, friends and colleagues joined us for the event, with a further 300 businesses unable to gain admission due to capacity constraints.
The signed deals, on the day, exceeded £170mn and the pipeline from the day was in excess of £500mn with significantly larger longer-term prospects.
We are now focused on taking eight trade missions to each country present at the Forum in Q1, 2023. We will be announcing dates for the missions in November 2022.
As this event showed, with the combined HMG offer of diplomacy, trade and finance, much can be achieved in the region.
We extend our thanks to our friends, partners and event supporters, without whom we would not have been able to realise this landmark event which sets the stage for ever greater economic cooperation with this fast-growing, increasingly important and strategic geographic region.
The WCAF 2022 Photo Gallery can be viewed here https://www.developingmarkets.com/gallery/uk-francophone-west-and-central-africa-trade-and-investment-forum-wcaf-19th-october-2022
Press coverage: The Africa Report, London Stock Exchange news, Forbes Afrique.
PROGRAMME
DAY ONE
08:00 - 09:00: Registration & Refreshments
09:00 - 09:15: Welcome Address & Opening Comments
- Office of the Secretary of State, Department for International Trade (DIT)
- Samir Abhyankar, Managing Director and Head of Private Equity, British International Investment (BII)
09:15 – 09:30: Keynote Addresses
- Tim Reid, Head of Business Group, UK Export Finance (UKEF)
09:30 – 10.30: The Unique Francophone Offer, Regional Economic Outlook and Investment Opportunities
Chair: Laurence Robertson MP, Chairman, Westminster Africa Business Group (WABG)
- Dr Mabouba Diagne, Vice President, ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID)
- Tinashe Makoni, General Counsel, Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG)
- Steve Gray OBE, Regional Head, West Africa, UK Export Finance
- Mirabell Mayack, Head of Governmental Affairs, African Investment Intelligence
Q&A Session
10:30 - 11:00: Refreshments Break
11:00 - 11:50: Insight into Benin and Cameroon and the UK Public and Private Offer
Benin |
Cameroon |
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11:55 – 12:45: Insight into Côte d’Ivoire and Gabon and the UK Public and Private Offer
Côte d’Ivoire |
Gabon |
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12:45 - 13:40: Networking Lunch/Food Security and Job Creation Networking Lunch
13:40 – 14:30: Insight into Guinea and Niger and the UK Public and Private Offer
Guinea |
Niger |
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14:35 - 15:25: Insight into Senegal and Togo and the UK Public and Private Offer
Senegal |
Togo |
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15:25 – 15.45: Tea and Coffee Break
15:45 - 15:55: DIT's Commitment to Francophone Africa
- John Humphrey, Her Majesty's Trade Commissioner to Africa, Department for International Trade
16:00 – 16:40: UK Expertise - Spotlights i.
Spotlight on Infrastructure |
Spotlight on Agriculture |
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16:45 – 17:25: UK Expertise - Spotlights ii.
Spotlight on Energy |
Spotlight on Blue Economy / Water |
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17:30 - 18.10: UK Expertise - Spotlights iii.
Spotlight on Financial Services |
Spotlight on Health and Education |
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18:15: Closing Ceremony and Gala Reception
DAY TWO
One-on-one meetings with the delegation taking place at individual Embassies/High Commissions/missions