Colombia is organizing its largest Business Matchmaking event in support of Expo 2020’s goal of fostering partnerships, catalyzing innovation, and discovering opportunities for strong business and trade investments.

Serving as an ideal gateway to investment possibilities in a variety of sectors,the Matchmaking Forum, hosted by ProColombia, will take place at the Dubai Exhibition Centre Expo from November 7 to 11, 2021, as part of the Expo 2020 activities. Around 3,400 business meetings will take place between 200 Colombian business representatives and 125 buyers from 20 countries across Europe, Asia, Africa, and America, with the goal of showcasing Colombia’s products and services and fostering global corporations.

Flavia Santoro, President of ProColombia said: “ProColombia is proud to organize the Business Matchmaking Forum right within the Expo 2020 Dubai to take advantage of the unique opportunities the export and import market has to offer between Colombia and regional businesses in the MEASA region as well as Europe. For years, Business Matchmaking has been proven successful in linking companies and stakeholders, at the same time promoting Colombia’s unique and diverse portfolio. We look forward to the positive outcome of this unique matchmaking opportunity which will only expand the connection and collaboration among industry players.”

The five-day event is one of the leading commercial initiatives of ProColombia, the government agency in charge of fostering Colombia’s non-traditional exports, international tourism, and foreign investment. It aims to pave the way for companies and investors to explore business partnerships in agribusiness, manufacturing, industry 4.0, apparel and chemical supply chains. Companies from various sectors will be represented in each of the industries, such as oils and fats, beverages, and meat etc. in agribusiness; construction materials, home furnishings, and design etc. in manufacturing industry; software, IT services etc. in industry 4.0; clothing and footwear etc. in apparel and personal care products, pharmaceuticals etc. in the chemical supply chain industry.

Santoro further added, “Expo Dubai will be a great opportunity to showcase Colombia’s wide range of high-quality goods and services from a variety of sectors. Our goal is to double sales compared to those generated last year through the Macro Matchmaking Forum of the Americas. In order for Colombian businesses to be as successful as possible, we have conducted webinars to prepare them for these business meetings.”

The forum also seeks to center discussions on logistics between Colombia and the UAE, prospective buyers and exporters, as well as packaging and product development. It will also further look into the potentials of the UAE’s e-commerce sector and trends. The Dubai Expo will be a potentiator and accelerator of the Vision 2030 Colombia – United Arab Emirates thanks to more than 60 actions that include promotional activities, business agendas, and events, with the participation of more than 200 public and private entities.

With the participation of trade allies from many sectors and key organizations, Colombia’s national government seeks to achieve the objective of boosting Non-Mining Energy (NME) exports to US$32 million by 2022, therefore bolstering the goal of achieving US$130 million by 2030.

Growth in NME exports is anticipated to reach USD 32 million by 2022, with a rapid approach to the target of USD 130 million by 2030. The creation of a new direct flight or code sharing with airlines in this region to improve connectivity is also projected to boost the number of tourists. Furthermore, Colombia is one of the world’s top coffee producers, and this event is likely to improve the country’s position in the regional market as there is a growing demand for coffee supply in the Middle East and North Africa region.

Expo 2020 is the most ideal platform for Colombia to further raise its foreign direct investments through its portfolio of opportunities in sectors such as infrastructure, technology, agribusiness, energy, and creative ventures, among others.