Ivorian Women Entrepreneurs Explore Global Markets at China Expo

With locally-made products being showcased on an international stage, two female entrepreneurs from Ivory Coast made an appearance at the ninth China International Import Expo (CIIE) in Shanghai. The selection of their products, ranging from dried mangoes to hibiscus powder, showcases the capabilities of African farm products in global markets. By attending the expo, the entrepreneurs hope to meet with potential buyers and make arrangements for future exports.

One of the participants in the program was Nathalie Cahi. She discovered an opportunity in the fruit-processing industry following her participation in a specialized training course. The exposure provided her with insight on the business potentiality of dried fruits. This motivated her to engage herself in entrepreneurial activities within this industry sector. She established 2Saisons which deals in fruit and vegetable processing. Some of its products include dried mangoes, dried pineapples, and many others in the form of dried fruits and vegetables. In addition to these products, the company is developing new formulas targeting children and infants.

Key Highlights:

• Two Ivorian women entrepreneurs showcase dried fruits and hibiscus products at CIIE
• Nathalie Cahi seeks Chinese partnerships to upgrade 2Saisons' production capabilities
• Asnath Adje aims to expand Lya Bissap's hibiscus products into international markets

For Nathalie, taking part in the CIIE is a critical step for improving her business operations and considering international growth possibilities. Even though the exposition offers her a chance to promote the products offered by 2Saisons to possible buyers, she would like to build connections with manufacturers from China that can offer food processing equipment and packaging materials.

These connections may help her to upgrade the technology used for production, improve the efficiency of her operations, increase her production capacity and make her business ready to operate on a larger scale. The women entrepreneur also thinks about technologies that will make her production more independent.

"Customers buy our products because they are tasty and healthy, with no added sugar or preservatives," Nathalie said.

She also added, "I know there are many suppliers in China for our business. I would like to see what they can offer us so that we can make our production more self-sufficient."

Another entrepreneur Asnath Adje is the founder of Lya Bissap, a company offering hibiscus-based products. Hibiscus is widely known and used for making drinks in Côte d'Ivoire as well as several other African countries. Nevertheless, Asnath managed to find some opportunities for developing it and turning into other commercial products.

Her entrepreneurship venture started way back in the year 2010, while she was still undertaking her studies in university. During that time, she received backing from an organization based in Yamoussoukro, the capital city of Ivory Coast, for supplying hibiscus products to their patients. This made her interested in finding other ways of processing this plant and its usefulness in other kinds of products. She then went on to conduct a year-long campaign of taste testing of hibiscus products.