Meeting at the Ministry of Economic Affairs of North Rhine-Westfalia on 5 December 2012

In the course of preparations for the German-Senegalese Business Summit to be held on 8 November 2013, the Association SenGermany attended on 5 December 2012 a meeting with Dr. Günther Horzetzky, State Secretary of the North Rhine-Westfalian Ministry for Economic Affairs, Energy, Industry, Middle Classes and Crafts. Functioning as a stronghold of industry in Europe, North Rhine-Westfalia is a predestined business partner for all countries making efforts to expand their industrial production. SenGermany has recognized these advantages and intends to have them translated into concrete action in the form of a German-Senegalese Business Summit in partnership with the State Government. During the meeting additional partners were named, such as NRW.International, with a programme set up in North Rhine-Westfalia for the promotion of investments abroad and for accompanying advisory services, as well as the Chambers of Industry and Commerce in the entire region. Furthermore the potential partners on the Senegalese side, such as APIX (Agency for the execution of big industrial projects) and the Employer Associations were likewise addressed, since the newly elected Senegalese Government has set itself the target to create more than 30.000 jobs in the current legislative period, expiring in 2017. To this end it will be indispensable to create several thousands of these jobs in medium-sized industrial companies, respectively in the productive economic sector. Apart from that, the Government of Senegal is planning to initiate big industrial projects like the construction of the greatest desalination plant of West Africa, as well as the processing of fruit and vegetables on a larger scale, and is moreover purposefully pursuing the target of independent energy supply, so as to be able to reach a growth rate of 4.5% in 2013 already. Yet, the experts of SenGermany want to promote the establishment of German small and medium-sized industrial enterprises in Senegal, and to accompany these activities with advisory services. The declared objective of SenGermany is to show the German SMEs that in the light of this goal not only the Senegalese internal market will be concerned, as all enterprises established in Senegal should also think of the entire West African market with more than 100 million consumers.