SOUTH AFRICAN BUSINESS DELEGATION ENCOURAGED TO GET READY FOR OPPORTUNITIES IN DRC

SOUTH AFRICAN BUSINESS DELEGATION ENCOURAGED TO GET READY FOR OPPORTUNITIES IN DRC

The South African business delegation which will be participating in the 7th Investment and Trade Initiative (ITI) to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) organised by the Department of Trade and Industry (the dti), were encouraged to get themselves ready for business opportunities in that country. The delegation of 50 businesspeople will participate in the ITI taking place from 14-19 September 2015 in   Kinshasa and Lubumbashi.

The Chief Director for Export Promotion and Marketing at the dti, Ms Zanele Sanni told the delegation that the ITIs have previously been very well received by the business community in the DRC. Sanni was briefing the delegation ahead of their departure to the DRC on Sunday.

“The first four ITI’s were held in Lubumbashi where we received a lot of support, and in the last two years we expanded to Kinshasa where we received overwhelming support from both government and business,” she said.

Sanni added that the dti was looking at strengthening ties with the rest of the DRC, due to the kind of support the ITIs are receiving. She also encouraged the business delegation to maximise the opportunity and leverage on the interest shown and commitments already made by the two governments to increase trade between the two countries.

“We are getting more trade leads and more, and more Congolese businesspeople are beginning to come to South Africa to procure goods and services. This shows that our work is beginning to pay-off,” she highlighted.

The Economic Counsellor in the Embassy of the DRC in South Africa, Mr Mzungu Diakolo told the businesspeople that DRC was open for business and its economy was growing at 8,5%. He encouraged the businesspeople to work through the Embassy and uitlise the services of the staff there to ensure that they are led to credible business projects.

The delegation will depart on Sunday, 13 September 2015 and will participate in business seminars, business-to-business meetings, round tables as well as site visits.