Focus Media (Kigali)
Sam Ruburika
21 October 2008
For the fourth time, the Private Sector Federation has organized a business tour to the China import and export trade fair, commonly known as Canton fair in the Guangzhou province.
The Canton Fair, which is believed to be one of the oldest trade fairs in the world, started its 104th edition last Wednesday. The exhibition usually takes place twice a year, in April and in October.
Rwandan entrepreneurs have been present at the fair for the past four years. It has become a crucial place for Rwandan business community to forge deals as well as business networking with not only the Chinese business community but also other business people all over the world.
Nasta Munara, in charge of permanent expo secretariat at PSF, explained that the Canton trade fair is organized in three phases: the first phase for construction material, ICT equipment and hardware; the second for consumer goods; and the third phase for tertiary goods such as gifts, decorative items etc.
For the first phase, PSF managed to facilitate 13 business people to the trade fair, while 19 others have so far registered for the second. The PSF expo secretariat is also still receiving applications from the business community for the third phase.
"We send business people to their chosen phase so that some don't have to waste their time," she said.
Munara pointed out that PSF facilitates the business communities through sensitization of the importance of such a huge trade fair, and also in the acquisition of visas. Once PSF has facilitated a entrepreneur, she said, they usually don't require more facilitation to go to the next edition since they are familiar with the procedures.
"Currently, there are more business people who we facilitated only once and since then have attended the Canton trade fair without our facilitation," she said.
As for the advantages of the fair, Munara said that it is a good place to acquire cheap machinery and materials, and that through networking the Rwandan business community could form partnerships and forge business deals.
A good example is the Kigali-based Champion Investment Company (CHIC) which has sent a delegation to the fair in order to identify and purchase import products.
However, Nasta Munara said that Rwandan businesspeople seldom take products to exhibition, yet usually there is a Rwandan stand where samples can be shown.
Small and medium companies
The Expo secretariat official also stressed the importance of the trade fair, saying that most manufacturing companies in Rwanda are China-oriented, and therefore it is easier for such companies to purchase raw materials as well as machinery for their industries.
Asked whether PSF puts into consideration small businesses which would benefit in regional and international trade fairs, Munara explained that the Expo secretariat identifies trade fairs that could benefit SMEs and works on facilitating them.
"We have organized crafts to be exhibited in Germany and Italy, and also in the regional Jua Kali exhibitions which have benefited them immensely," she said. She added that Expo secretariat is currently organizing the Jua Kali trade fair scheduled to start late November.
Munara further remarked that PSF has also managed to facilitate the business community to attend training and exhibition in India and Egypt.
"In January we sent a group of business owners on construction business training in India," she said.
She expressed optimism that the PSF facilitation to the business community would benefit them and help them move forward.
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