IORA’s Modernising Trade in the Indian Ocean Rim conference was held on 17-18 June 2019, with 220 participants from 19 Member States and six Dialogue Partners. The final report of the conference is now available, with supporting economic analysis.
IORA’s Modernising Trade in the Indian Ocean Rim conference was held on 17-18 June in Durban, South Africa, hosted by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) of South Africa and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) of Australia. A conference report summarising the discussions and key takeaways is now available, here.
There were four sessions at the conference. The first session focussed on emerging trade and investment opportunities in the region. The second session focussed on trade facilitation, with a focus on supporting participation in regional value chains. The third session identified more specific tools to promote regional trade. The fourth session focussed on tools to promote women’s economic empowerment in the Indian Ocean Rim region.
The publication ‘IORA Selected Economic Indicators’, summarised regional trade data and trends to inform conference discussions. This was prepared by the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) and Euromonitor International, and is now available here. It provides an overview of GDP forecasts for IORA members, demonstrating that there is a positive story of growth for most IORA Member State. It shows that that there will be opportunities to increase inbound investment capital. It also highlights that growth will come with challenges related to infrastructure, skills development, energy demand, and human needs. In this regard, it will be important for IORA to seek to develop in a sustainable way that meets the needs of aspirations communities in order to fulfil their potential.
Conference outcomes have since informed new and ongoing work plans for IORA’s Working Group on Trade and Investment (WGTI), Indian Ocean Rim Business Forum (IORBF) and Working Group on Women economic Empowerment (WGWEE). These three working groups are taking forward outcomes within IORA as the association injects new energy into facilitating trade and investment facilitation in the Indian Ocean Rim region.
Read the conference report here.
Read IORA Selected Economic Indicators here.
Read more about IORA’s Trade & Investment Facilitation work here
