July 13, 2015

Turkey, Rwanda business forum strengthens ties

The business community under the Rwanda Active Businessmen Association (RWABA) have called on their colleagues in the sector to join the association as a way to exploit investment opportunities beyond the country's borders.


RWABA is directly linked to Tuskon, a confederation of Turkish businessmen and industrialists.

The call was made during the third annual dialogue and amity dinner held at Serena Hotel in Kigali last week.

The event that attracted several investors from companies in Rwanda and Turkey was sponsored by Hope Academy Rwanda.

Adem Sanliturk, the secretary general of RWABA, said since strengthening the business sector requires creating enough opportunities from different areas, a common union is a necessity.

"Through RWABA, members can have access to alternative markets, especially in Europe, where they have an opportunity to penetrate 150 countries where the organization has branches," Sanliturk said.

He added that since the establishment of the association, more doors for opportunities have been opened for business in Rwanda and Turkey, meaning that the two countries share a lot in common to favor investors.

"So far, the organisation has been playing a key role in establishing a bridge between the two countries and managed to bring 14 Turkish companies to Rwanda in construction, mining, agriculture, infrastructure, education, tourism, textile, food and cleaning materials," added Sanliturk.

Meanwhile, during the event, three top businessmen were recognized with plaques for their performance and leadership skills.

The three are; Joseph Mugisha from Fair Construction, Alloys Mutabingwa, the former deputy secretary general in charge of planning and infrastructure at the East African Community and Benjamin Gasamagera, the chairman of the Private Sector Federation.

Mutabingwa lauded the efforts of the organization for linking business partners together for the common cause of development.

"There is value addition to our fraternity through networking and forging relationships, which ensures that we can now work harder and deliver more," Mutabingwa said.

Faustin Niyishobora, the managing director of Technomark Corporation Ltd, a company dealing in hardware, said the organization opened more doors for his business.

"It is hard as an individual to travel abroad looking for business opportunities, but through such associations, we have realized simplicity in conducting business outside Rwanda," Niyishobora said.

Published on The New Times, 13 July 2015, Monday

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