The Africa–Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Business Exhibition (AABE), to be held in Sandton, in November 2017, will seek to boost trade and business ties between two of the fastest-growing regions in the world.

Singapore-based organising company Conference & Exhibition Management Services (CEMS) group MD Edward Liu on Wednesday told media at a briefing that the exhibition would be a joint trade mission and business event.

Trade between Africa and Asean has been growing by 15% a year over the past decade, and was worth $42.5-billion in 2012. The Asean common market is worth $2.6-trillion and is, collectively, the seventh-largest economy in the world, he illustrated.

The Singapore Manufacturing Federation, which has 3 000 manufacturing companies as members, is a lead partner in the exhibition, and six national authorities, including Singapore's International Enterprise and South Africa's Department of Trade and Industry, have been invited to participate.

Additionally, business associations from Asean and Africa have also been invited to participate to ensure there is a good combination of public and private trade and business professionals at the exhibition to facilitate the establishment of trade and business relationships, said CEMS GM Steven Tan.

The 80 to 100 exhibitors for the inaugural AABE exhibition and conference will be hand-picked to boost the likelihood of business ties being formed. The AABE will also have a matching system to propose engagements between the delegates of African and Asean businesses to boost the likelihood of relationships being formed.

The Asean nations have achieved an average yearly growth rate of between 5% and 7%, while African countries have achieved average yearly growth rates of 5%. Both regions have growing middle classes and complement one another in trade terms, as the goods produced by each are typically in demand in the other. This also means that the trade balance is not skewed in any one party's favour.

The AABE exhibition and conference will focus on creating long-term ties between Asean and African nations. The rise of the middle class, which includes 67-million households in Asean and which should to grow to 125-million households by 2025, is an economic and business opportunity for companies to establish themselves in this market, concluded Liu.