Tunisia is an ideal platform to foster stronger economic ties between Africa and Europe, EU Ambassador to Tunisia Marcus Cornaro said Tuesday at a webinar on the theme “Tunisia, Bridgehead between Europe and Africa.”
“There are several opportunities of triangular cooperation and investment which are worth exploring further,” the EU official told participants in the webinar held as part of the 7th EU-Africa Business Forum (EABF22). The forum is jointly organised by the European Commission and the African Union Commission (February 14-17).
Cornaro shed light on Tunisia’s assets, mainly its geographic location, its free-trade agreements with the European bloc and some African countries as well as competitive strengths in several areas of activity. Tunisia’s participation in this 7th edition is crucial to showcase its assets as a bridgehead between the two continents.
Tunisia is the focus of attention of the European business community, said Director General of the Foreign Investment Promotion Agency (French: FIPA) Abdelbaset Ghanmi. It is increasingly seen to be the gateway for high growth potential markets in Africa.
This is nothing new, particularly as the country has a multidimensional economy and a sustainable industrial structure which responds to ever-changing international requirements. This is a logic of efficiency which fosters global value chain integration and helps Tunisia serve as an ideal platform for Europe/Africa development in the MENA region.
Several European and African enterprises carved out a place in the Tunisian ecosystem in a bid to secure expansion in the sub-region. They bear witness to the reliability of Tunisia’s assets
President of the Tunisian Confederation of Citizen Enterprises (French: CONECT) Tarek Cherif said African countries have ambitions linked to industrialisation and job creation with a view to handling rapid population growth. Tunisia can play a key role, Cherif said in this vein, considering its assets and know-how.
Alejandro Alvarez de la Campa, International Finance Corporation (IFC)’s Global Product Leader of Secured Transactions and Collateral Registries and current leader of the Financial Infrastructure Programme in Sub-Saharan Africa said the IFC provided support to the Tunisian government to enhance the business environment and bring a positive impact in connection to investment and job generation as part of the Tunisia Investment Climate Reform programme.
This programme helped upgrade some economic regulations and build the capacities of Tunisian firms and institutions.
The 7th EU-Africa Business Forum brings together business managers of African and European enterprises to promote exchange with decision makers about opportunities of investment and partnership between the two continents.
Source: Tap News Agency