NGBI Group and ISIYAD open the door to Turkey for Togolese businessmen
A major partnership agreement signing ceremony took place on January 22, 2022, in Lomé, between a Togolese company and a Turkish business consortium. New Generation Business and Investment Group (NGBI) for Togo, represented by its director, Jules Bafena, and the Association of Businessmen, Industrialists and Investors of Istanbul and Izmir (ISIYAD), represented by its President, Cemal Coban, signed the documents of the agreement at the headquarters of the Togolese company. The latter becomes the exclusive representative of ISIYAD in Togo, it was announced.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Cemal Coban stated that " as of today, the only representation of ISIYAD in Togo is NGBI Group... People take pictures with us and then go and wave it at businessmen and women, telling them that they are our representatives. This is false. From now on, we have an exclusive representative, which is NGBI Group. We want to tell the press and the public ." The Turkish top management added that " NGBI-Group is present in Togo and helps in several sectors such as business, trade, and hospitality, for example. NGBI-Group likes good partners. So do we. We are therefore happy to sign a good partnership with this company ." According to the businessman, this signing comes as part of the commitment made by Turkish President Recep Tayyep Erdogan during his recent visit to Togo.
For his part, Mr. Bafena explained that this agreement provides several opportunities for Togolese businessmen. According to him, it covers several sectors including textiles, technology, electricity, mechanics, tourism, industry, construction, and education. " Thanks to this partnership, several people in the fields of electromechanics and engineering, for example, can receive training. They can also benefit from advanced training courses. Scholarships will be available. Togolese and Turkish businessmen now have a reliable framework for discussion through which they can establish meaningful business partnerships. For us, it's about opening Turkey's doors to genuine exchanges of services between our two countries ," said the Togolese leader.
Industrialization, the key
This signed agreement should promote, with the help of Turkey's experience, the industrialization process in Togo. " I toured Togo's markets and supermarkets. I noticed that prices are very high. The problem is that Togo doesn't process. We must stop this in order to reduce prices. I also noticed that there are infrastructure and equipment problems, some of which are insufficient. It's true that the most urgent is the agri-food sector. ISIYAD will work with its new partner in this area ," Mr. Coban insisted. " We will help with industrialization. I believe we can accomplish a lot in 5 years. With effort and hard work, we will get there. You are a small country with only 8 million inhabitants, and in my country, we have 85 million inhabitants." If we have done it today with an airport in every city in 20 years, it is because you can do it too ,” he added as an encouragement to the Togolese.
In the coming days, dozens of young Togolese will already be able to benefit from this convention by going to Istanbul to receive training and do business. This will come just a few months before the holding of an Expo next September in the same Turkish city, which will bring together thousands of businessmen from all over the world. A major meeting to which Togolese businessmen are also expected. " But they will have to go through the ISIYAD representation in Togo ," it has been whispered.
It should be noted that ISIYAD is an association affiliated with the Turkish Chamber of Commerce. It brings together more than 6,000 businesspeople and has representation in several other countries. As for NGBI Group, it is a Togolese company specializing in project and financial engineering. It focuses on three areas: industrial representation, commercial representation, trading, and logistics.
By Djamiou ABOUDOU
