Smart Egypt which organizes the biannual Egypt and Middle East expo in Kigali that opens on April 28 at at Amahoro National Stadium, Ashraf Mahmoud said that tradeshows create investment opportunities in any country. According to organisers, this year’s tradeshow will attract participants from Egypt, Iran, Malaysia, India, Singapore, Pakistan, who will be exhibiting a range of products, including textiles, leather products, jewelry, and kitchenware, among others.

The expo is organized in conjunction with local businesspeople and the Egyptian Embassy.

Speaking ahead of this year’s expo, the Smart Egypt executive manager, said about 10 Egyptian businesses; mostly in general trade, and the health sector, have set up shop in Rwanda thanks to the bi-annual tradeshow.

These firms will facilitate knowledge transfer, noting that each firm that opens business in the country partners with a local firm. This will, in the long-run, boost expertise of local people in the sectors where Egyptians invest. The bi-annual expo supports the tourism and hospitality sectors, especially hotels and accommodation facilities used by exhibitors.

Natacha Haguma, a local entrepreneur and event organiser, said the expo provides an avenue for the local private sector to network and develop business linkages that they can exploit to enter new export markets.

The expo also provides employment opportunities for more than 200 Rwandans each time the event is held. This money supports a lot of households and enables some youth to pay school fees. Therefore, one can say that Rwanda is benefiting significantly from the bi-annual trade fair.

The expo was initially planned as an annual event, but it was transformed into a bi-annual event staged every April and October.

Smart Egypt has been organizing successful exhibitions and the first to bring Egypt to Mauritius through the annual Egypt Trade Fair, they have created strong awareness within the Mauritanian market for the Egyptian and Arab market.

In addition to Mauritius, Smart Egypt has also been successfully connecting Egypt with the African markets in South Africa, Cote d’Ivoire, Mozambique, Ghana, Madagascar, Ethiopia, Cameroun, Gabon and Kenya, with future prospects in Zambia and Congo Brazzaville.

Smart Egypt strongly believes in the potential of the African market and the ability of the Arab countries to accomplish strong foundations in the countries.