MENA-Africa Trade and Infrastructure – Fuelling ‘Disruptive’ Growth

Simon Cook participated in a panel discussion, "MENA-Africa Trade and Infrastructure – Fuelling ‘Disruptive’ Growth," at a hybrid event sponsored by Global Trade Review (GTR) on September 22, 2021.

The session shined a light on efforts to unlock market access for companies looking to enter African markets, along with the crucial role of DFIs and multilaterals in providing both financing support and guarantees to protect strategic value chains and keep suppliers afloat. Discussion also focused on how African governments are looking to outsource infrastructural development plans and the opportunities for exporting companies in filling requirement gaps, the need to look beyond 'the usual suspects' to more untapped markets as well as "the two-speed recovery," the extent to which the pandemic has exposed global inequalities across crucial industries such as energy and power.