Cairo, Egypt — A delegation from the African development Bank will participate in the Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF), which will hold in Cairo, 11-18 December 2018, as co-sponsor of the event.

Considered the first of its kind, and conceived as the first major outcome of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), Africa's single market of over one billion people, the IATF is designed as a platform for entry into this huge market, foreshadowed at this inaugural African Continental business development event.

The IATF, is expected to assemble (over 50,000) prominent dealmakers, businesses, industries, investors, countries and suppliers looking to cut deals. The organizers estimate that up to US$ 25-billion dollar business deals, contracts and investment transactions will be sealed during the trade fair. The IATF also seeks to broaden investment opportunities. A wide array of opportunities are expected to be unveiled at the IATF in agriculture and agribusiness/agro-processing, commodities, power and energy, youth development and gender-focused investments. Others are healthcare and health management and heavy industries, digital economy and technologies, light manufacturing and logistics, extractive and creative industries (e.g., Fashionomics), and infrastructure development, trade finance, manufacturing, and financial intermediation, capital markets as well as franchising of technological transfers.

The Intra-African Trade Fair will host over 1000 exhibitors during a 7-day trade show that provides a platform for sharing investment information and enabling investors, agencies and countries to meet, discuss and conclude business deals in Business-to-Business (B2B) exchanges.

An African Development Bank pavilion will showcase its operations that drive development across the continent as well as serve as meeting point for exploring business opportunities with prospective partners/investors.

Media contacts: Olivia Ndong Obiang, o.ndong-obiang@afdb.org , Fahd Belbachir, f.belbachir@afdb.org