Malta Enterprise, in collaboration with Embassy of Malta in Tunis, organised a business delegation to Tunisia between 28 November and 1 December.
Thirteen Maltese companies operating in a wide range of sectors including renewable energy, pharmaceutical industry, construction and architectural sector, ICT, packaging, plastic and tobacco, visited the Cat Business and Technology Convention at the International Fair Compound in Tunis.
At the opening ceremony, Dr Sue Vella, CEO of Malta Enterprise, signed a Memorandum of Understanding on mutual cooperation between Malta Enterprise and the Tunisian Foreign Investment Promotion Agency, FIPA. She was accompanied by Ambassador Vicki Ann Cremona.
Some 337 Tunisian exhibitors took part in this three-day Cat 2012 fair, which included 803 foreign firms from Europe and the Mediterranean, such as Italy (210), France (153), Belgium (56), Turkey (92), Algeria (56), Irak (18), Libya (17), Syria (5), Morocco (7), as well as Spain, Greece, Poland, Switzerland, Germany, Finland, United Kingdom, Portugal, Slovakia, Netherlands, Bulgaria, Austria, Czech Republic, Sweden, Slovenia, Albania and other African and Middle Eastern countries. Various countries organised pavilions to represent business and projects that are being carried out through collaboration either between governments or private industry.
A series of one-to-one meetings was organised for the Maltese businessmen by the Maltese embassy, in collaboration with ME during which the Maltese businessmen had the opportunity to establish contact with around 60 Tunisian businesses.
The B-to-B meetings were aimed to favour trade contacts, boost partnership and business between the two countries and explore new markets. Kies Ali, external consultant of the African Development Bank, was invited by the Embassy of Malta to provide an overview of the business environment in Africa and Tunisia, in order to outline the various opportunities that could be exploited by Maltese companies seeking to expand throughout the Mediterranean and in other nearby markets in sub-Saharan Africa.
Overall, the Maltese delegation held successful meetings and will further develop their contacts in the near future.