The third edition of the environmental fair, IFAT Africa was held in South Africa in synergy with two other events, on the food industry and analysis. A winning formula that has achieved great participation.
More than 3,300 water, waste and environmental professionals gathered in early July in Midrand, a suburb of Johannesburg, South Africa, to discuss the challenges and know about the solutions at the third edition of IFAT Africa, the leading environment fair in Southern Africa.
Reflecting growing industry concerns for water, wastewater and environmental management, IFAT Africa attracted an 83% increase in visitor numbers in 2019 compared to the previous edition from 2017, stakeholders from all over South Africa as well as Botswana, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Mozambique, Swaziland, Tanzania, Tunisia, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
IFAT Africa 2019 welcomed 172 exhibitors from the environment industry, 13% more than in 2017, with companies from 19 countries participating. This year, international participation has increased, notably thanks to the national pavilions of China, Germany, the Netherlands and, for the first time, Italy and Austria.”It is gratifying to see the global market converge in Africa to engage with local market leaders and stakeholders to share their experiences and know-how,” said Stefan Rummel, managing director of Messe München, organiser of IFAT Africa. As the world’s leading environmental fair, IFAT publishes its editions around the world: in China, India, Turkey, South Africa, and, of course, in Germany, where the event was born several decades ago. An extensive programme of conferences ensures lively debate and knowledge sharing around the world.
The management of huge volumes of electronic waste as well as water supply and wastewater treatment were the focus of conferences at IFAT Africa. In addition to technology and funding issues, education, training and employment issues have also attracted visitors. “Skilled specialists and creative developers from the African continent are essential for the development of environmental services and technologies that truly meet the needs of Africa,”said James Deku, communications head at Zoomlion Ghana Limited, a fast-growing business in the waste sector during a career management seminar for young professionals organised at IFAT Africa.
During the three days of the show, we were able to meet many exhibitors: Wilo Pumps, Netzsch Southern Africa HSM, KSB Pump & Valves, Lanxess, Grundfoss, Bodotex South Africa, BHS Sonthofen… In all, they were rather satisfied with the attendance and, more importantly, with the quality of the people they dealt with. The synergy with the Food & Drink Technology Africa (FDT Africa) and Analytica Lab Africa exhibitions, which were organised on the same site at the same time, was particularly appreciated.
Annejan Visser, Process Engineer at QFS (water and odour management) shares this opinion: “We are very interested in the business contacts that we have been able to create. The collocation of the three shows allowed us to meet new potential customers”.
“We had a number of high quality responses and we saw new potential customers. Collocation [with other salons] has been a plus for us, and we’ve made some new connections with the food processing industry,“said Hennie Pretorius, Endress + Water and Wastewater Unit Manager,Hauser, world leader in metrology.
“We are looking for partners to work with and we have found good leads for collaboration,” said Rick Grundlingh, junior process engineer at the WEC. “Having our brand here with some of the biggest players in the industry has been a big step forward,” said Merwe Kunt of Mas Daf, a Turkish pump specialist. “
Christoph Haushofer
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