Precis event – ​​Economic gloom: President Arnauld Akakpo calls on the private sector to invest more

2024-01-20 22:26:13

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Actors from the Beninese private sector gathered on Friday for the 2024 economic start. This return made it possible to draw the attention of stakeholders to the low morale of Beninese economic operators, a situation to which the president of the CCI-Benin proposed to find a cure through more investment and synergy.

What is it about : Professional associations and organizations from the private sector met on Friday January 19, 2024, at the Palais des Congrès in Cotonou. The aim was to take a look at the achievements of 2023 in order to plan for the expectations of 2024. Present at this second economic start were actors from the private sector, their professional associations, public agencies in charge of private sector as well as heads of consular institutions. The major attraction of this event was the presentation of a study entitled “Barometer on the evolution of Beninese companies in 2023 and the prospects for the year 2024”. This study carried out in December 2023 and January 2024 made it possible to question a sample of a thousand Beninese companies on what they think of the past year and to collect their perspectives for the current year. Carried out by the Observatory of Commerce, Industry and Services, an institution of the CCI-Benin, this opinion survey revealed that 61% of companies, all sectors combined, claim to have recorded a drop in their turnover figures. business in 2023. Likewise, 71% of them report stagnation or a decline in their cash flow, while 53% emphasize that the business environment was not very favorable during the period. Among the most significant obstacles that businessmen and women complain about is not only inflation, but also the repercussions of events in Niger, the Russo-Ukrainian war, the decline of the naira, etc. However, 57% of companies still expect a positive year in 2024.

What officials say : Commenting on the results of this opinion survey, the coordinator of the OCIS, Hippolyte Koukou emphasized the hope that reigns within the private sector despite the gloom of 2023. For Arnauld Akakpo, President of the CCI -Benin, “we must work in synergy and move towards much more investment”. The theme of this meeting was precisely “Together for the construction of an ecosystem for the development of the private sector”. He announced the arrival this year of Nigerian investors after the batch of Chinese investors recently in Benin. As for Edouard Sèhlin, CEO of the SME Development Agency (ADPME), he indicated that his institution aims to bring together all public initiatives to promote SMEs in Benin. He then invited business leaders to register to benefit from the various support offered by the State.

Between the lines : The second edition of Benin’s economic return helped to shed light on the need for a synergy of actions by the Beninese private sector. But she also focused on the business environment which remains to be improved in Benin.