The Slovak Investment and Trade Development Agency in cooperation with the Embassy of the Slovak Republic in Nairobi organised a trade mission to Kenya and Tanzania which took place from 18th to 26th of February 2023. The mission was timed to coincide with the first edition of the EU-Kenya Business Forum and the EU-Tanzania Business Forum.The core idea of these events was to intensify the growth of business cooperation between the two East African countries and the EU in a wide range of sectors (energy, agriculture, waste and water management, digitalisation, logistics, light/heavy industry, mining, etc.), while concentrating on sustainability and the development of "green" solutions.The Slovak delegation, consisting of 19 companies, which represented the second largest European representation after the French delegation, provided the opportunity for B2B and B2G negotiations with African partners, as well as the opportunity to present their activities and plans in the territory in front of a multinational audience in the framework of thematic panels.The trade delegation was accompanied by representatives of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic, led by Lucia Kišš, Director General of the Economic and Development Cooperation Section of the Ministry.From the side of the Slovak Mission in Nairobi, evening networking events were also organized for Slovak businessmen in both countries: the Kenyan-Slovak Networking Evening and the Tanzanian-Slovak Networking Evening. These provided the Slovak delegates with an additional opportunity to develop the already acquired contacts. SARIO's established cooperation with the Kenya Private Sector Alliance (KEPSA) and the Honorary Consulate of the Slovak Republic in Dar es Salaam - and last but not least the support of our economic diplomacy in the territory - provided Slovak entrepreneurs with the opportunity to negotiate in an informal atmosphere with prominent representatives of the private and public sectors in Kenya and Tanzania. The Kenyan reception was honoured by the visit of Charlene Ruto, daughter of the current President of Kenya, William Ruto.The well-established cooperation between the Kenya Private Sector Alliance and SARIO was confirmed by the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding during the EU-Kenya Business Forum. The Memorandum provides a platform for deeper cooperation between SARIO and KEPSA - an organisation whose members include more than 1 million Kenyan businesses. Another planned step in the development of mutual relations is the organisation of a reciprocal trade delegation from Kenya to Slovakia.Group and individual visits to Kenyan and Tanzanian companies and institutions were arranged for Slovak companies as part of the mission, such as a visit to Konza Technopolis, the flagship project of the Kenya Vision 2030 economic development strategy, representing Kenya's version of "Silicon Valley". Konza aims to become a world-class city, driven by the information, communication and technology (ICT) sector, state-of-the-art infrastructure and a supporting pillar in the expansion of the country's technology-driven industries. During the visit, the Slovak companies had the opportunity to present their activities with regard to the possibility of their involvement in the supply chains for the implementation of Konza city.Other visits that took place during the business mission included a meeting with the Kenyan UN office in Nairobi, a meeting with the Kenya Ministry of ICT, a meeting with the Tanzania National Housing Corporation and a visit to the Tanzania Ports Authority (Dar es Salaam Industrial Port).Representatives of Slovak companies visited the exhibitions Power & Energy Africa, LightExpo Africa, BuildExpo Africa, WaterTech Africa, Oil & Gas Africa, MinExpo Africa and Tanzania Trade Show, which were held on the dates of the mission in Dar es Salaam.This was SARIO's second mission to East Africa in the course of the year (previous event: Trade Mission to Rwanda and Kenya - May 2022), and the growing interest of Slovak companies in these territories, as well as the interest of African partners in cooperation with Slovak companies, form a basis for further intensification of trade relations between the Slovak Republic and the countries of the region. SARIO appreciates the quality of cooperation with the Embassy of the Slovak Republic in Nairobi during the mission and welcomes further joint efforts to support the development of business relations of Slovak companies in the East African region.
