A DELEGATION OF BELGIAN ECONOMIC OPERATORS VISITING THE PAA

Autres Friday 19 January 2024

A large delegation composed of several Belgian business leaders, and led by HEM. Carole VAN EYLL, Ambassador of Belgium in Côte d'Ivoire, was received by Mr. Hien SIÉ, Managing Director of the Abidjan Port Authority (PAA), on Tuesday 05 December 2023.

The stated objective was to explore investment opportunities and economic cooperation with the Abidjan Port.

At the beginning of the exchanges, Mr. Hien SIÉ welcomed the strong presence of Belgian businessmen on Ivorian land, which was a guarantee of the solidity of relationships between Côte d'Ivoire and Belgium, but also constant efforts by the two countries to strengthen their bilateral cooperation, particularly at the economic level.

That framework of dialogue was an opportunity for the Managing Director of PAA to present the commercial performance of the company, reveal the importance of the Abidjan Port in the Ivorian economy, and highlight its role as a key logistics gateway for West Africa. After presenting the large-scale projects carried out at the Abidjan Port during the past decade, Mr. Hien SIÉ lifted a veil on future development projects likely to interest Belgian economic operators, including the construction of a crossing under the Vridi Canal to access the land reserve located on Boulay Island, the construction of bypasses to the Abidjan Port, the development of barge transport, and the creation of a logistics platform.

To this end, he asked Belgian businessmen to play a proactive role in their realization, because of the guaranteed investment returns, the economic performance of Côte d’Ivoire, the solvency of PAA, and the competitiveness of the Abidjan Port platform.

 

HEM. Carole VAN EYLL, while welcoming the presence of the Belgian Sea Invest Group, concessionaire of the bulk carrier terminal, at the Abidjan Port, reaffirmed the will of her country to improve economic relationships with Côte d'Ivoire through new types of partnerships, and by creating a bridge between Belgian and Ivorian economic operators.

A call was also made by the Belgian diplomat for the strengthening of exchanges between the Abidjan Port and Belgian companies.