“Africa is increasingly important to the EU” says H. E. the Danish Ambassador to South Africa Trine Rask Thygesen at the BUSINESS BEYOND BORDERS event during African Utility Week that took place in Cape Town from 16-18 May.

The recent Business Beyond Borders (BBB) event at African Utility Week was praised by H. E. the Danish Ambassador to the Republic of South Africa, Trine Thygesen, as a “project to help EU businesses, in particular SMEs and clusters, to operate internationally by engaging in business opportunities – and our doors are open for Africa”.

The Danish Ambassador represented the voice of the EU at the first BBB event to take place outside Europe – which was held at African Utility Week (AUW), Cape Town (16th – 18th May), and focused on small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and clusters in the water, power and utilities sector.Speaking during AUW’s opening keynote session, Ms Thygesen said: “Africa is increasingly important to the EU. Major African markets with strong growth rates represent significant increased cooperation between our continents. May AUW be the platform for engaging in new sustainable and inclusive economic development in Africa as well as the EU.”

The Danish Ambassador to the Republic of South Africa also underlined the potential for private investment in energy and water, as Ms. Thygesen believes that “the answer to unlocking more potential lies in the formulation of PPP’s within the water sector”.

Joining Ms. Thygesen during AUW’s keynote programme, were high-profile governmental and entrepreneurial personalities such as Dikobe Ben Martins, South African Deputy Minister of Public Enterprises; and Ben Ngubane, ESKOM’s Board Chairman.During his keynote speech, Dikobe Ben Martins highlighted the fair’s potential to “share content and best practices” in the power and water sector: “

The conference comes at a time when Africa is dealing with mounting challenges with regards to access to sustainable, modern energy services, which are a prerequisite for meeting basic human needs and for economic and social development”.BBB is a European Commission-funded initiative which helps EU businesses to expand regionally and globally. By facilitating a series of Business-to-Business (B2B), Cluster-to-Cluster (C2C), and Business-to-Cluster (B2C) matchmaking events at the top international trade fairs around the world, the aim of the initiative is for new international business partnerships to be formed and deals to be brokered.

Over the course of AUW’s three days, BBB facilitated over 900 matchmaking meetings between more than 729 companies representing 60 countries.Besides the one-to-one matchmaking sessions at the BBB Connecting Platform, SMEs and clusters also had the opportunity to present their business and technology to a wider audience at the BBB Demo Zone stand. Other BBB-supported activities included a Workshop on Hydropower organised by the European Renewable Energies Federation (EREF), and the BBB Social Media Competition, which sought to help participating companies increase their visibility online.

Coming from South Africa, one of the BBB Demo Zone participants, Mark Williams of Folia Water, considered the BBB initiative to be positive for his company: “You get to meet like-minded people in the water business and find collaborators, investors and potential customers. I have had several meetings that went very well, and hopefully we will have some follow-up to do. I definitely recommend Business Beyond Borders to any SMEs seeking to internationalise their business.”

The next BBB matchmaking event will take place on 18-21 September at TEXWORLD, Paris, and will be aimed at companies operating in the textile and apparel industry.To find out more about how European businesses can benefit from this opportunity to grow across borders with a complete package of professional support, visit the Business Beyond Borders website at www.businessbeyondborders.info

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Contact: Ana Oliveira, LOWeurope: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Photos of the Business Beyond Borders (BBB) matchmaking event at African Utility Week are now available at BBB’s official Flickr account.

NOTES TO EDITORS:

African Utility Week
African Utility Week is the only global meeting place, conference and trade exhibition for African power and water utility professionals. African Utility Week offers a unique networking opportunity for engineers, stakeholders and solution providers alike. The 17th edition of African Utility Week took place from 16 to 18 May, 2017, and hosted thousands of businesses from across Europe and the world looking to trade and grow. The main sectors covered were products and services for the power, water and waste management utilities industry: power generation, T&D, metering, clean technology, finance, reliability, water supply or energy efficiency.

Future BBB events
African Utility Week was the second of ten BBB events planned for 2016-17. The previous (and first ever) event took place at Genera, Madrid on 28th February – 1st March. The next BBB event will take place at TEXWORLD, Paris from 18th-21st September 2017.For the full list of future events, please visit: http://www.businessbeyondborders.info/events/ The Business Beyond Borders Consortium manages the programme on behalf of the European Commission. It comprises:

EUROCHAMBRES: The Association of European Chambers of Commerce and Industry represents over 20 million businesses in Europe – 98% of which are SMEs – through members in 43 countries and a network of 1700 regional and local Chambers.
EMECA: The European Major Exhibition Centres Association unites 22 leading exhibition venues in Europe. They provide businesses with an excellent infrastructure and outstanding information networks. The 22 EMECA Members organise and host 1,769 exhibitions a year, both in Europe and all over the globe, with more than 350,000 exhibitors and over 41,5 million visitors.
UFI: The leading global association of the world’s tradeshow organisers and exhibition centre operators, as well as the major national and international exhibition associations. UFI represents 700 member organisations in 83 countries around the world. Over 900 international trade fairs bear the UFI quality label.
LOW: A strategic communications consultancy based in Brussels, with a network of associates across Europe. We specialise in creating policy-rich events; managing complex programmes; PR & all types of marketing communications; and EU related public affairs.

By participating in B2B meetings at the renowned South African international trade fair, SMEs in the water & power utility sector can benefit from EU support. This opportunity will help them expand their businesses abroad.

The next Business Beyond Borders business connections event will take place in Cape Town (South Africa) at African Utility Week (AUW), a leading water and power utility trade fair, in May 2017. Business Beyond Borders (BBB) is a European Commission initiative to help EU businesses, in particular Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and Clusters, operate internationally with the ultimate goal of increasing economic growth within and outside Europe.

A series of business connections events are being organised to bring together SMEs and representatives from relevant clusters, with potential trading partners from Europe and abroad with the aim of assisting businesses to access new international markets.

After a first successful business connections session at the Genera fair, which took place in the beginning of March in Madrid, BBB turns its attention to the biggest trade fair on the African continent. Hosting thousands of visitors each other, AUW is known for a strong representation of EU companies at the event, hosting national pavilions for Denmark, the Netherlands, Germany, France, Belgium and Czech Republic.

Welcoming the upcoming BBB event, Commissioner Karmenu Vella said “By helping EU green SMEs operate internationally and by promoting green partnerships in target sectors, this Business Beyond Borders (BBB) business connections event at African Utility Week will help preserve our natural resources, promote clean energy and drive growth through a circular economy.”

Thanks to the large network of partners and support entities, a unique package is being made available to businesses across the world in the water and power utility sector wishing to take part in AUW as members of the Business Beyond Borders delegation:

- Business meetings perfectly matching each BBB delegate needs and preferences
- Access to five technical sessions in the strategic conference, one of which organised by EREF specifically on hydropower
- A convenient business connections area at the heart of the trade fair, with free access to the side conferences during the fair
- Access to an international and well placed worldwide network, including several EU-funded support schemes
- Possibility to present your company and technology in the "Demo zone" stage 
- Possibility to participate in the Project and Country Spotlight sessions to access the newest project opportunities on the African continent
- Professional assistance on the spot to make the participation tailored to the needs of each BBB delegate
- Post event assistance and survey, to support the BBB delegates even after the participation in the event  

The registration is now open at http://www.african-utility-week.com/bbbmatchmakingMore than 200 companies are expected to attend the B2B Meetings in the dedicated BBB area. Business Beyond Borders, maximising your business connections experience at African Utility Week 2017!  

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Contact: Ana Oliveira, LOW Europe: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

NOTES TO EDITORS: African Utility Week:
The only global meeting place, conference and trade exhibition for African power and water utility professionals. Organised annually by Spintelligent, African Utility Week offers a unique networking opportunity for engineers, stakeholders and solution providers alike.

The 17th edition of African Utility Week will take place from 16 to 18 May, 2017, and will host thousands of business from all over the world looking to trade and grow. The main sectors covered within African Utility Week are products and services for the power, water and waste management utilities industry: power generation, T&D, metering, clean technology, finance, reliability, water supply or energy efficiency.

The Business Beyond Borders Consortium:
EUROCHAMBRES: The Association of European Chambers of Commerce and Industry represents over 20 million businesses in Europe – 98% of which are SMEs – through members in 43 countries and a network of 1700 regional and local Chambers.
EMECA: The European Major Exhibition Centres Association unites 22 leading exhibition venues in Europe. They provide businesses with an excellent infrastructure and outstanding information networks. The 22 EMECA Members organise and host 1,769 exhibitions a year, both in Europe and all over the globe, with more than 350,000 exhibitors and over 41,5 million visitors.
UFI: The leading global association of the world’s tradeshow organisers and exhibition centre operators, as well as the major national and international exhibition associations. UFI represents 700 member organisations in 83 countries around the world. Over 900 international trade fairs bear the UFI quality label.
LOW: A strategic communications consultancy based in Brussels, with a network of associates across Europe. We specialise in creating policy-rich events; managing complex programmes; PR and all types of marketing communications; and EU related public affairs.

Visit us: www.businessbeyondborders.info @EU_BBB #EUBBB Business Beyond Borders is an initiative funded by the European Commission and coordinated by Eurochambres.