AFRICA. Addressing the “immense untapped commercial opportunities” in African airports was top of the agenda at the inaugural ACI Africa Commercial Forum.
Over 80 delegates representing airport groups, retailers and distributors from across Africa attended the event, which took place in Livingstone, Zambia at the ACI Africa Annual Congress.
Dufry’s Pedro Castro, Gebr. Heinemann’s Stefan Van Gronigen, M1nd-set’s Clara Perez and JCDecaux’s Alexandre Spezzoto-Simacourbe spoke at the event.
ACI Africa Secretary General Ali Tounsi, who gave an introductory address, said of the ACI Africa Commercial Forum: “I am absolutely delighted with today’s event. The feedback from our airports and business partners has been superb. Aviation in Africa is growing, and for our airports to cope with that, we need to diversify and expand our commercial activity.
“The interest in today’s event proves that our airports are now ready to embrace these opportunities. This has been a great start for this initiative which we now anticipate will become a regular feature at all future ACI Africa conferences. African airports are open for business, and it is ACI’s role to help them fulfil that potential.”
The event was moderated by European Travel Retail Confederation Secretary General Keith Spinks, who also addressed the annual congress on key regulatory threats that the industry is facing internationally and in Africa.
“It was a privilege for me to support Ali and the ACI Africa team with this event, and we look forward to continuing to build this relationship,” he said. “This inaugural Commercial Forum has been a great success and we look forward to it continuing to flourish in the years ahead.
“Whilst the commercial opportunities in African airports are substantial; there are many potential industry and regulatory issues that could significantly curtail that growth. The African Commercial Forum is a platform to allow these issues to be debated and for solutions to be found.”
The inaugural meeting of the ACI Africa Commercial Forum was sponsored by Dufry, Gebr. Heinemann, M1nd-set, and Crossings International.
