EABC NOW COURTS G77, NON ALIGNED MOVEMENT FOR BUSINESS PARTNERSHIPS

BY GRACE MACHA IN ARUSHA

In a bid to seek more opportunities for the region, the East African Business Council (EABC) has started to engage the Group of 77 (G77) and the Non Aligned Movement (NAM).

The regional business body in collaboration with its Uganda focal point will this month organize a series of conferences to identify areas of cooperation.

Uganda will be hosting the 19th NAM Summit from January from January 15th to 20th and the third South Summit (G77) from January 21st to 23rd. 

The EABC and the Private Sector Foundation of Uganda (PSFU) say they will use the two conferences to reach out to potential investors and business partners. 

In addition, the two organizations will organize a side event - a Business and Investment Forum - to coincide with the two high profile NAM and G77 conferences. 

The forum, set to attract 600 delegates, will run from January 15th to 18th and is themed “Deeper Cooperation in Trade, Tourism and Investment for Shared Global Affluence”. 

The EABC said the business fraternity in the region will be invited to leverage the opportunity during the summits which, ideally, are aimed to promote trade, tourism and investments. 

"The business and investment forum is an opportunity for EABC members for global networking and investment opportunities", the apex body of private sector associations based here said in a statement.

Businesses in the East African region are likely to use the occasion to enter into partnerships encompassing joint ventures, trade as well as seek new market opportunities.

The events in the Uganda capital will once again bring into fore the Non Aligned Movement (NAM) which used to dominate politics in the global south in the past.

The NAM is an international organization consisting of 120 countries that are not formally aligned with or against any major power bloc.

It is the third largest grouping of member states worldwide after the United Nations (UN). It has never hosted its summit in the region despite having membership from all the East African Community (EAC) member states.

G77, on the other hand, is a coalition of 135 developing countries, designed to promote its members' collective economic interests and create an enhanced joint negotiating capacity in the UN.

Combined, the G77 and NAM are the world’s largest economic area by GDP, the largest market with more than half of the world’s population.

The two organizations are home to some of the world’s largest conglomerates, corporations with unmatched opportunities for business linkages. 

"The 19th NAM Summit and the 3rd South Summit are excellent opportunities to bring Trade, Industry, and Investment which is at the nexus of economic development to the core of the South-to-South cooperation", the EABC said in its statement. 

Ms Sarah Kagingo, a Ugandan business executive and vice chairlady of PSFU has urged the business fraternity in the EAC region to use the twin events to reach out to key business partners. 

"From January 17th, Investment agencies of East Africa should use the forum to pitch, whereas on January 18th, the heads of state will grace its opening", she said.