Director, Priority International Denis St Bernard
Last week at Westminster University in central London, Cheryl Henry, Director of Purple Pages hosted an African and Caribbean Summit, with a strong slate of speakers, headed by Clive Carpenter, Vice Chairman of the Business Council for Africa, Hon George Fynn, Ghana High Commission Trade & Investment; Mr. Bola Akindele – MD, Courteville Group, Caribbean Enterprise Network (CENUK) Operations Director, among others.
Cheryl Henry highlighted the fact that the African and Caribbean markets have been seeing a multi level rise in the past few years. ‘If industry sources are to be believed, this upward trend has no sign of coming down or even lying flat for few more years to come. The fact that major companies in Africa and the Caribbean are going public proves the potential of the African and Caribbean markets. The African Caribbean Investment Summit provides a common platform for African and Caribbean land and property owners, potential buyers, international corporate companies and dealers to showcase their services and future plans.
Bola Akindele, Managing Director Courteville Business Solutions
This summit was designed to connect inward investment, business owners, brokers, investors and buyers to seize opportunities in Africa and the Caribbean. Ever since the 90s when the African and Caribbean economies began to open up, a number of big conglomerates have emerged.
However, selling or buying in Africa or the Caribbean requires professional guidance; this ACIS Summit was the perfect place to get comprehensive information on the latest investment scenarios, be it a residential investment or commercial opportunity.
The leading industry speakers gave an in-depth guide on what, when, where and how to take that next business or family related step. Mr. Akindele in his presentation lamented the point that Africa’s time has come and the Diaspora was best placed to access the many opportunities available in the fastest growing emerging market in the world today.
He sighted tremendous opportunities in all sectors of the economy. While Mr. Carpenter balanced the discussions by warning potential investors that, although there are tremendous opportunities in Africa, one must do the necessary research and due diligence before taking the plunge, as there are also lots of risks associated with these opportunities.
There are cultural norms which one needs to know, e.g. despite the growth in technology and ease of communication via telephony, the Africans prefer face to face interaction in doing business.
The Jamaican moderator and international motivational presenter and Lecturer Mr. Andre Muhammad, confirmed that the Caribbean business scene mirrors that of Africa. CENUK also confirmed same and added that the Caribbean should also be viewed as a gateway to the South American and Latin American markets, while pointing to the World Bank Rankings in doing business in the Caribbean and the opportunities behind these numbers.
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