World Trade Center, Africa

Just as a wave gains huge momentum and power before crashing onto the shores of Africa’s dramatic coastline – so trade and growth are gaining huge momentum on this incredibly diverse continent.

Africa – as an emerging Market will continue to serve as a major growth engine of the global economy. However to achieve success and advance the African economies in a highly developed and competitive market, the individual African developing economies must pool their resources together and work alongside each other.

The World Trade Centers Association is on the forefront of this burgeoning trade. It is on the cusp of a wave that is constantly gathering more energy.

As ports and harbours are Africa’s gateway to the World; the World Trade Centers are the gateway to Africa.

Hence, the rationale for World Trade Centers springing up in numerous cities across sub- Saharan Africa.

The goal is thus simple: to increase trade with Africa through each of the regional World Trade Centers in this vast continent.

With a worldwide network of businesses in more than 100 countries and 330 cities, the World Trade Centers Association has successfully increased trade all over the world. Now, their sites are set on Africa and the wealth of opportunities it has to offer.

World Trade Centers are powerhouses that amalgamate all the facilities and services necessary to transact international business and give companies (regardless of size) the expeditious access to international markets and a universal language to communicate with.

The Mochron Office for International Trade, that provides services to the World Trade Center Johannesburg and Cape Town, has as its primary objective to increase trade with Africa and hence to achieve this objective applied to the WTCA (World Trade Centers Association) for 12 additional WTC licenses in sub-Saharan Africa and more specifically the SADC region (over and above the existing two South African licenses – WTC Cape Town and Johannesburg).   These options were granted by the WTCA in New York to establish future WTC cities and are as follows: Angola (Luanda), Botswana (WTC Gaborone), DRC (WTC Kinshasa), Kenya (WTC Nairobi), Mozambique (WTC Maputo), Madagascar (WTC Antananarivo), Namibia (WTC

Windhoek), Republic of Djibouti (WTC Djibouti), Rwanda (WTC Kigali), Tanzania (WTC Dar es Salaam), Uganda (WTC Kampala), Zambia (WTC Lusaka) and Zimbabwe (WTC Harare).  

The export of African natural resources, coupled with Value Add Processing on the continent, will in return stimulate the import of capital equipment and other foreign direct investment, as well as the engineering and manufacturing sectors. African business people have a deep-rooted pride and desire to use their own skills, creating direct wealth on the continent.

The Mochron Office for International Trade leverages the capabilities of 43 Sub-Sahara African countries to function and operate as a unified global business force.

Services offered by The Mochron Office for International Trade:

• Trade Promotion
• Transactional Trade Services and Trade Education
• Import/Export Management
• Financial and Risk Management Solutions Pertaining to Importing & Exporting
• WTC Executive Club

Offering exclusive business services including: around the clock Private Banking, Executive Travel, Personalised & Individualised Executive global introductions, reciprocal office facilities in more than 300 cities, fast track access to all World Trade Center services, and multiple first mover opportunities.

A crucial unprecedented service offering extended by the Strategic Business Unit – Trade facilitation – is an essential dimension in economic development in today’s globalised world, especially from a developing country’s perspective.

Trade facilitation reduces the transaction cost and complexity of International Trade and improves the trading and investment environment in a country, while at the same time enhancing government control. As a consequence, trade facilitation results in mutual benefits for both the public and private sector and thus, in the end, transforms into increased welfare for the individual citizens. In layman terms, this is where the action occurs; WTC trade deals are executed at this stage, which includes freight forwarding, shipping, shipping insurance, clearance, couriering, trade financing, trade project financing, legal/regulatory requirements, bonded warehousing, trade settlement, and full Import/Export management.

Together we can make a difference and achieve our individual growth objectives as well as achieve an increase of one percent of Global Trade with Africa which will earn the African continent approximately US$70- billion in annual revenue (which equates to more than three times the current foreign aid donations it receives and 16 percent more than Africa requires to alleviate poverty on the continent.)

Forty-three World Trade Center realestate opportunities and spin-off business opportunities across African countries have been created. Real-estate value for developers using the World Trade Center brand is significant both in occupancy rate and rental returns, while the spinoff business opportunities leverage the business network of every businessperson for sustained and regular deal flow.

The business opportunity with the Office for International Trade is therefore threefold:

I. Real Estate Development: World Trade Centers are some of the most iconic buildings, which serve as landmarks in the respective cities where they operate. These buildings command rental rates at an average of 18 percent higher than similar buildings less than a street block away. Vacancy rates are in most cases 11 percent less than the market average. Countries like China are developing more than 120 WTCs because of the macro-economic impact this has on their country. The World Trade Center brand together with highimage/ impact events and large volumes of people who visit WTCs provide implicit value to tenants. WTC buildings consolidate international trade agencies and private sector firms involved in global trade and commerce, providing a single point of access – it is a visible location of mostly intangible services. The Office for International Trade provides the services and management for the WTC projects it undertakes in Africa. The

opportunity is for Real Estate Developers to capitalise on this opportunity without the need to run the operations of the WTC in Africa.

II. Export and Import: Companies across sub-Saharan Africa are invited to participate and grow their business globally, through the development of import and export trade both on the continent and off the continent. These companies will enjoy exposure through the region’s local WTC office to more than one million potential business partners at other WTCs globally. As the power of the World Trade Center network extends across countries and nations, each participating business is able to grow globally through The Mochron Office for International Trade and each regional WTC.

The opportunities within a World Trade Center are not exclusive to big business. Each World Trade Center is required to engage local business to participate in every aspect of it is global success. As a professional person active in one of 150 selected regions, you are invited to apply for accreditation from The Mochron Office for International Trade. A successful accreditation will ensure your regional agency license. The agency represents The Mochron Office for International Trade and is the local partner that exclusively generates business between that region and The Mochron Office for International Trade. Agency revenue will be generated through every transaction with The Mochron Office for International Trade. These range from Trade Missions, Trade Exhibitions, International Trade Deals, Trade Finance, World Trade Center Real Estate and much more.

To be qualified to carry this international accreditation and secure an agency license, applicants need to be mature businesspersons, who have held senior executive positions in business over a number of years. In most cases only experienced senior directors and managing directors can receive this accreditation – alternatively individuals with similar experience can apply. Applicants are required to attend training and assessments during a three week Regional Business School Training Seminar at the World Trade Center, followed by an interview with a panel of fully accredited businesspersons. During this assessment period, The Mochron Office for International Trade ensures that its regional agents are experienced enough to talk business, to its international clients. A regional agent is part of the global team for The Mochron Office for International Trade and they are the contributors to the Africa one percent goal. To assist in ensuring the agency success, accredited agents are introduced to the CEOs of strategicbusiness partners in their regions and to the CEOs of other World Trade Centers. They are also automatically members of the World Trade Center Executive Club, receive sponsored international business travel, VIP conference passes, have access to World Trade Center technology platforms and office infrastructure. Only a select number of professional persons can be invited to secure an opportunity to grow their personal wealth and experience the challenges and excitement of international business.

III. Strategic Partnerships: Strategic Partners in each economic region of Africa are required to make trade as seamlessly as possible. It is efficiency that generates the profit which grows the value of local business and economies. We therefore invite companies that provide business services related to: freight forwarding, shipping, customs brokers, business brokers, business consultants, accounting, legal, business development, international trade, import/ export, global sourcing, procurement, commodity traders, professional conference organising, international marketing and publishing, trade and credit risk insurance and trade finance to come forth. Strategic partnerships will be formed with a select number of these companies in each economic region. In addition, the Office for International Trade is also seeking partnerships with port authorities, customs offices, warehousing and banking partners across Africa.

It takes drive, ambition and superb business acumen to reach the highest echelons of the corporate world.

Invest in your future – invest in your continent – World Trade Center, your investment partner.