Eximbanka participates in a business mission during the official visit of the Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic Juraj Blanár to Kenya and Tanzania. The aim of the mission is to support Slovakia’s economic diplomacy, expand opportunities for Slovak exporters in the prospective markets of East Africa and identify new opportunities for financing and insurance of export projects.
The first stop of the mission is Kenya, which is one of the most important economies in sub-Saharan Africa and represents the commercial, logistical and financial centre of East Africa. The country is also known as “Silicon Savannah” and is one of the most important technology hubs on the African continent.
Representatives of Eximbanka attended the Slovakia-Kenya Business and Development Forum in Nairobi yesterday, where presented financing, insurance and guarantee instruments that help Slovak exporters to expand to foreign markets. The forum focused on linking trade and development activities, which create conditions for long-term and sustainable economic development of partner countries.
“Africa is gradually becoming part of the strategic interest of Slovak exporters. We see a growing demand for solutions in the field of energy, infrastructure, digitalization or sustainable transport. The growing potential of African markets was also confirmed by the interest of entrepreneurs at last year’s Export Forum dedicated to sub-Saharan Africa. Eximbank’s role is to help Slovak companies manage the risks associated with entering new promising markets with a higher level of risk and to create conditions for the successful implementation of their projects. The current mission represents another step towards concrete partnerships and projects in the region,” said Rastislav Podhorec, Eximbanka’s CEO.
The Eximbank’s programme in Nairobi also included bilateral meetings with representatives of the African Trade & Investment Development Insurance (ATIDI), the Delegation of the European Union to Kenya and the European Investment Bank (EIB), which are among the key partners in promoting trade, investment and development projects in the region.
Discussions focused on deepening cooperation, development of trade and investment in Africa, possibilities of financing projects of Slovak companies in the region and coverage of potential risks.
After the programme in Kenya, the mission will continue in Tanzania, where the Eximbank delegation will participate in the Tanzania-Slovakia Business Forum and other meetings aimed at developing mutual trade and investment cooperation.