The symposium was presented by Mr. Ibrahima Cheikh Diong, Founder and CEO of Africa Consulting and Trading (ACT), and his talk focused on the following: -
a) The challenges faced by African private sector players (inadequate financing solutions, limited technical capacity, limited access to market, challenging business environment, high cost of doing business, political interference, etc.).
b) The talk, which was very lively and interactive with the staff, attracted a number of questions and comments, ranging from governance issues to market size, incubation, PPP, linkages for African SME, rule of law, financing instruments for African private sector, cost of doing business, pace of industrialization in Africa, etc.
c) To wrap up the talk, Mr. Diong made few recommendations to BADEA, which ambitions to play a greater role in the SME business in Africa, including, amongst other things: -
a) Foster an integrated approach to supporting SMEs in Africa (Technical assistance and financing combined).
b) Support sector and/or trade focused investment or promotion forums to boost both investment and trade between Africa and the Arab world.
c) Support private sector platforms, like the Dakar Business Hub, across African capitals to foster investment and economic dialogue across the continent".
H.E. Dr. Sidi Ould TAH Director General of BADEA thanked Mr. Diong for his valuable talk and confirmed that BADEA is increasing its efforts for promoting private sector operations for its role in Africa’s Development and should become a cornerstone for sustainable growth.
