Trade, technology and tourism were all on the agenda as policymakers discussed how Africa can bounce back from the Covid-19 pandemic and the resulting economic crisis

With over 10,000 registered participants from 59 countries, the Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF) in Durban was the biggest pan-African business event to take place since the pandemic began. 

The seven-day fair was organised by the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) in collaboration with the African Union (AU) and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat under the theme “Building Bridges for a Successful AfCFTA”.

It hosted over a thousand exhibitors in the Durban Exhibition Centre while the accompanying four-day conference in the city’s International Conference Centre brought together business leaders, senior officials and seven sitting heads of state.

On the final day of the trade fair on 21 November, Kanayo Awani, managing director of Afreximbank’s Intra African Trade Initiative, reported that deals worth $36bn had been signed during the event and that others had still not been completed. 

She said that 1,161 exhibitors, including 838 companies from 59 countries of which 46 came from Africa, had showcased their goods and services in a massively successful event.