CEC’s first trade mission to West Africa kicks off Wednesday

CAIRO – 11 April 2018: The Chemicals and Fertilizers Export Council’s (CEC) first trade mission to West Africa’s Ghana kicked off on Wednesday with the participation of 13 companies from the council’s different industrial sectors.

The mission is organized by the council in cooperation with the Egyptian Exporters Association (Expolink) and will run from April 11-13.

Executive Director of CEC Waleed Azab said in a statement that bilateral meetings with more than 100 Ghanaian companies have been organized, projecting making contracts worth LE 8.8 billion.

The mission comes in light of the CEC’s plan to double exports to Africa, The council’s head Khaled Abo el-Makarem said.

The council, in cooperation with Egypt’s commercial office in Ghana, had prepared detailed studies on the needs of the Ghanaian market as well as those of the African market.

The studies showed that the West African countries, on top of which comes Ghana, are considered promising markets for Egypt’s chemical exports.

Egypt’s current share of Ghana’s chemical imports does not exceed one percent.

The Trade Ministry has identified 10 countries, out of 52, as a first phase for the plan to double exports. The focus will be on five main sectors, namely engineering, building materials, chemical industries and textiles.

Trade Minister Tarek Kabil said earlier this month that Egypt is studying the establishment of a logistics center in Ghana or Côte d'Ivoire to boost Egyptian exports to West Africa.

Egypt’s exports of chemicals and fertilizers increased by 22.2 percent in January and February 2018, recording $748 million, compared to $613 million in the same period of 2017, according to data from CEC.

The data showed that the chemicals and fertilizers sector’s exports stood at $364 million in January 2018, compared to $287 million the previous year, recording a 26.8 percent increase.

In February, exports reached $384 million, versus $326 million last year, recording a 18.4 increase.

Abo el-Makarem said that the sector aims to increase its exports by 20-25 percent this year, saying that the hike in exports in the first two months of 2018 would support the sector’s target.