When friendly countries and the Economic Community of West African States come together in Lagos in September for the fourth edition of Ecofairs, the development of trade among West African nations will take front stage.
According to the PUNCH, This was recently stated by Ecofairs’ Chief Executive Officer, Sylvester Riicolins, at the formal Ecofairs 2024 launch in Lagos.
This year’s festival, according to Riicolins, will take place in Lagos’ Tafawa Balewa Square from September 6 to September 15.
He continued by saying that this year’s event would be a 4-in-1, happening day and night for the full ten days of the trade show.
More than 10,000 consumers of goods and services are anticipated on each day of the festival, according to Riicolins.
Highlights of the occasion, according to him, include the Africa Excellence Awards, sales and exhibition, and a program to eradicate malaria.
“I want to tell Nigerians that Ecofairs has come to benefit all Nigerians at different levels. We are going to have a day and night festival for the first time. I discovered the city of Lagos has a great deal of sleepless places.
“We therefore wish to inform Lagos that business can be conducted both during the day and at night.
“Everyone is safe in Lagos State. Therefore, we aim to revitalize Lagos’s nightlife in order to boost the city’s economy. We have invited over 400 countries to participate.”
According to him, these individuals are delivering goods to our door that would have required a visa for us to purchase.
The Head of the Economic and Office of the Egyptian Embassy in Lagos and First Secretary for Commerce, Amr Altantawy, stated that Egypt’s primary priority was the development of the African economy.
He asserted that Egypt and Nigeria are well-represented and have a significant impact on all African organizations and forums.
He expressed hope that the trade show would boost business, particularly in the areas of food, agriculture, mining, energy, building, infrastructure, textiles, IT, and the health and medical industries, between Nigeria and Egypt.
“In terms of bilateral economic relations, the two largest economies in Africa are those of Egypt and Nigeria. In recent years, there has been an increased level of activity in the economic links between the two countries,” he stated.
“Prominent Egyptian enterprises, including Arab Contractors, Mantrac, Elsweedy, and Raya, have positioned themselves as formidable contenders in the Nigerian market, having engaged in significant infrastructure and power projects.”
Data from the ECOWAS indicates that a number of products dominate the region’s external commerce, which creates local value added because fuels derived mostly from extractive industries .
The primary export goods of the West African Economic Community are fuel, followed by cocoa and its food preparations (which account for 5% of exports), precious stones (3%), cotton, edible fruit, rubber, plastics, wood and wood products, fish, and shellfish (roughly 1% apiece).
The goal of Ecofairs, according to its organizers, is to provide a forum for bettering commercial relations and promoting items that are created in Africa.
