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it's my distinguished pleasure and honor
to introduce to you the president of
Senegal his Excellency President Macky
Sall joining us the chairman chief
executive of TP Worldport
Sultan Ahmed bin Salam the question is
of trade at the moment when we look at
the trade situation we see a worrying
slow down and we see greater
protectionism some would say arguably on
the back of a Donald Trump and a new
more protectionist United States what's
your feeling well thank you very much
first of all I'd like to thank His
Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al
Maktoum and also like to thank His
Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al
Nahyan was a president of UAE and as I
just said the Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid
Al Maktoum who's the vice president if
I'm minister and ruler of Dubai and I
also would like to congratulate mr.
Sultana been the Silurian who's with me
here today not to answer to your
question concerning protectionism after
all we've been dealing with this issue
before and it stands up from the fears
in the face of globalization fears that
have been created by that and I think it
would be a mistake to fall back on our
own economies because after all
international economies are
interdependent whatever the country
whatever its size whatever its power I
think that every today a weak country
today cannot live autonomously has to
interact with the weather
the world furthermore capital is
constantly shifting from one country to
the other so there you have to have a
system of rules you need to have an
international platform enhance you need
international trade we need to have a
system of rules that protects the
investment that protects a free
circulation free movement of goods and
capital and people or rather than try to
cut ourselves off from all these flows
we are moving away from that free trade
model which you have promoted in Senegal
you brought in DP world you've created
these new ports and container ports do
you worry that the world is moving away
from this now we move oh well yes indeed
we do have some some fears we hear some
talk here in there about protectionism
but we felt we need to maintain the
world system we want to maintain and
protect the interests of most people so
I'm talking about globalization but this
globalization has to take into
consideration national interest not only
for the large countries or big countries
but also for small nations and African
nations
I think globalization has to be able to
take into consideration the wealth of
the local we have to be able to maintain
this wealth we have to be able to have a
globalization that maintains also
employment so I think we have to improve
on this model of free trade we have to
be vigilant to try to protect it I think
it's very important for us mr. president
fascinating because if I turn to you
chairman you are on the other side in a
sense you are one of the companies that
has truly benefited from globalization
through the supply chain and through the
free movement of goods you'd agree are
you now one of those companies that
could suffer if there is a backlash
against globalization and what would you
like to see
let me tell you the globalization
anti-globalization feelings there might
be reasons behind it some of them are
valid in our case we are trading we are
we're an international company we are a
global company doing a lot of trade
around the world
I believe the anti-globalization
sentiments are a phase I don't think
it's going to affect our business in the
way that it is perceived today who is
holding the flag wound and the
globalization is done for him he's
talking about fair trade not free trade
and fair trade everybody for it isn't
fair trade everybody in the eye of the
beholder the problem with the phrase
fair trade is it means all things to all
men and women let me tell you fair trade
to America if America is open for every
product they expect other market to be
open if they don't put their market they
gonna have repercussions in America
which is fair what do you mean by fair
trade is the president well we talk
about the fair trade this one that is
fair that is just a lot of different
countries who produce them to sell their
goods and also for other countries who
can receive investments to be able to do
that without constraints and non-tariff
barriers no there are different kinds of
protection mechanisms some of the motors
some of them are non-tariff depend on
the political wills of different states
and depending on the situation or
circumstances but we feel that the trade
agreements have it to be adopted we have
to see the situation between Africa and
the US you have a goal for instance
which is they've a trade agreement that
allows for African goods that to be able
to be exported to the US without the tax
without tariffs our economies are not
the same after all we don't have the
same level of development
and before they can be assistant to
protect the weaker you have to have a
system of common rules and everybody has
to agree on these rules and especially
in terms of foreign goods that come into
your country
chairman looking at the way in which you
can grow in Africa at the moment what is
it you need from the president and his
fellow presidents on the continent in
our business the biggest danger is the
inefficiencies in supply chain so our
business traditionally ends start from
the key wall to the gate after the gate
there are inefficiencies what we need to
have is better infrastructure to connect
the car in tamale and to chat into many
landlocked countries now in Africa there
are over 200 million people who live in
landlocked countries this is the
opportunity and this is where the growth
I see for my company and who I'm where I
will come to your public-private
partnership in a moment mr. president
but the idea that you can find the
investment capital to drive deeper into
Africa comes from where from private
public partnership naturally this is
something that government cannot do on
their own this is something that the
private sector cannot do on their own so
what we need from the president and many
president Africa is transparency good
governance to qualify for safe
investments in infrastructure oh dear
mr. president oh dear he's just put his
finger on one of the most difficult
issues of doing business in Africa isn't
he now you have made great measures in
Senegal to to deal with these but there
are many other countries that haven't
yet
what a mercy well thank you very much
and I don't want to say about things
about other people but I think that
Africa is really changed and Africans
have changed themselves in all of our
countries we're trying to promote
infrastructure because we realize that
without infrastructure you're not going
to be able to have a development of
trade among African countries without
infrastructure you cannot have
sustainable development as the chairman
of DB Walter said we have a number of
course we have a certain infrastructure
but within that a lot of countries are
landlocked and they need they need
better connections between the ports and
the different markets so you need to
develop this infrastructure that costs a
lot of money I think it's a partnership
if the investor is going to pay the
consumer the final consumer will pay so
you need a public investment from the
public government you need private
investment in this partnership a private
public partnership in Africa in order to
develop this a foreign investment and I
think in this way we'll be able to win
the investor will be able to obtain some
wealth as well and that's how we aim to
develop infrastructure in Africa
the imf's article for report the summary
into the economics of your country it
was very complimentary which basically
says you have few problem you have a few
challenges but the economics are strong
at the moment do you see it as your duty
mr. president to lead on this question
of increasing trade in Africa as being
the president of one of the countries
that in a better situation but yes
certainly today as I just mentioned we
launched a new strategy agency that is
talked about the plan for an emerging
senegal that is based on three different
pillars first of all the two
structurally transform the
economy through a better infrastructure
through a better agriculture that
produces more and also through
developing the energy sector so you need
a more robust economy a more resilient
economy and that's what we're working on
under the second pillar is to achieve an
inclusive will that is able to maintain
employment because after all what we
need is a new knowledge the new fields
and we have to be able to prepare
Africans for this a new economy so
that's a second pillar of our emerging
Senegal plan the third is a the state of
law it's not a fact the rule of law and
I think that's very important we have
been able to achieve a fairly high level
of growth of two hundred fifteen and
sixteen over 2.6 percent and I think
that really we're on the right sub path
are there and I think we hope to be able
to share this kind of strategy with
others we look at the latest numbers
from the WTO and we see a stagnation or
a relevant stagnation in world trade
with a possibility of a decline in world
trade how concerned are you that this is
that getting the engine moving again is
going to be very difficult let me tell
you in our business seventy five percent
the growth we see is in emerging market
in Africa in Latin America in certain
Southeast Asian countries what we need
to do is to remove the inefficiencies
today for me if I see growth in the GDP
in Senegal it reflected my business the
rule or the formula is one percent
growth in the GDP in Senegal will
translate to three times the number of
containers we'll handle so one percent
GDP equals three percent more in the
number of containers that can handle
that category and that is how we look at
countries the more growth in the GDP the
more I'm interested to be in that
country but you can't put the problem
you've got is one show in
those countries it's very difficult
because the capital investment is so
great we'll just pause for a moment to
acknowledge his highness excellent we'll
carry on for a few more minutes and yes
carry on yes so basically it's in my
interest to see the growth in the
economy of Senegal all the chaos in the
economy of Mozambique or other countries
because that reflects three times in my
business Donald Trump ultimately is he a
concern for you with his protectionist
policies
and not at all I think this is the face
I think the sentiment that you see in
America you see it in many parts of the
world but this is something we're gonna
pass international trade and trading
between countries husband is what create
job for people and that would continue
mr. president the last US president had
a strong Africa policy are you hopeful
and I used the word hopeful not
concerned are you hopeful that this
president also engages with Africa well
yes I think the American president
whoever he is
whether he's Republican or Democrat he's
first of all an American president an
African we do hope that Donald pronto
will realize that Africa has a great
potential with more of a billion people
with very important middle class 300
million people who are part of the
middle class so it's a continent they
have to deal with so indeed we are
hopeful that the interests that has been
shown to us Africa will continue with a
new administration and I think that very
soon they'll be more involved Africa is
an opener
and we're open to deal with the US as
was the case before and we are indeed
hopeful that things will go well I wish
it could have been longer but you have a
luncheon we need to move on chairman
thank you thank you sir mr. president
thank you very much as well I shall
invite you to mr. president thank you
sir
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