The Arab-Africa Trade Bridges (AATB) Program, a multi-donor, multi-country, and multi-organizations program in partnership with the Ministry of Economy and Planning of the Republic of Tunisia organized a business matching event on pharmaceutical products and medical devices from the 1st to the 2nd of December 2022 in Tunisia.
The organization of the B2B event was an opportunity to highlight the significant potential of the Arab and African markets in the pharmaceutical sector, establish business partnerships, and foster collaboration between operators from both regions.
The focus on the sector is aligned with United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 3 (Good Health and Wellbeing) and equally stands to strengthen the harmonization of African standards to facilitate intra-African trade in pharmaceuticals and medical devices.
The B2B event saw the participation of corporations, stakeholders, and National Pharmacies from Tunisia, KSA, Egypt, Benin, Togo, Algeria, Congo, Mauritania, Comoros, Djibouti, Madagascar, Senegal, Mali, Cote d’Ivoire, Niger, Tchad, Guinea, and Burkina Faso as well as representatives from the ACAME – Association Africaine des Centrales d’Achats de Médicaments Essentiels (the African Association of Central Purchasing Centers for Essential Medicines) who witnessed the signing of business and partnerships deals between different participants.
During his opening remarks at the Buyers/Sellers Meeting on Pharmaceuticals products & Related Industries in Tunis, Eng. Hani Salem Sonbol, CEO of ITFC and AATB Secretary General, said: “The primary goal of the Arab-Africa Trade Bridges Program (AATB) is to strengthen trade and investment relations between the African continent and the Arab world by offering financing, insurance, and technical assistance packages aimed at increasing trade exchange between the two regions. As the pharmaceuticals and medical devices sector offers cross-broader growth opportunities, the AATB program is focused on nurturing trade in this critical sector.”
The event underlines AATB’s special interest in the pharmaceutical sector in the regions and comes to complement ongoing work for harmonization of African standards to facilitate intra-African trade in pharmaceuticals and medical devices in partnership with the African Organization for Standardization (ARSO).
