Muhereza Kyamutetera, General Manager fireworks Advertising
Indian businesses expanding to Uganda and Ugandan investors heading to India can now receive distinct business and communication advisory services from fireworks Advertising Uganda Ltd.
This follows the launch of the Africa-India Advisory Desk, a one-stop information centre which is spearheaded by Arcay Burson-Marsteller in South Africa, to which fireworks Advertising is affiliated, and Genesis Burson-Marsteller in India.
Burson-Marsteller is a leading global public relations and communications firm, with a network of affiliate partners across, with whom it provides services in 52 of the 55 countries on the continent.
The Africa-India Advisory Desk’s mandate is to assist Indian and African companies to navigate the African continent and Indian sub-continent respectively. The Desk will offer a range of services from market-entry analysis and strategy to stakeholder mapping to delivering customized communication across diverse audience(s), customers, government and financial institutions
Muhereza Kyamutetera, General Manager fireworks Advertising commented: “Investors from India setting up businesses in Uganda and vice versa, will receive the benefits of The Africa-India Advisory Desk at fireworks Advertising because of our strategic partnership with Arcay Burson-Marsteller.
In the last two decades, investors from India have invested over $1 billion in Uganda because of the vast business opportunities the economy has to offer.
This figure is projected to double in the next decade therefore; fireworks Advertising will give new and existing investors the desired strategic communications and marketing counsel to enable them to earn great returns on their investments in Uganda and India.
The contribution of India to Uganda has been and continues to be significant making it one of the main drivers of economic growth of the country.
The volume of bilateral trade has increased from US$ 678.5 million in 2009-10 to US$ 727.9 million in 2010-11 registering an 8% growth, according to the ministry of external relations India. In 2011, India was the second largest FDI investor in Uganda in 2011.
“The Africa-India Advisory Desk was prompted by our experience of working across multiple markets in Africa and across India, and understanding that companies/organisations may be challenged by the divergent cultures, business landscapes and unique legal and political environments,” commented Robyn de Villiers, Chairman and CEO for Africa of Johannesburg-based, Arcay Burson-Marsteller.
“We believe that our 20+ years’ experience of providing regionally appropriate, locally-driven communications services, seamlessly executed across the African continent, combined with Genesis Burson-Marsteller’s robust spectrum of communication offerings across the Indian sub-continent, will be a winning combination for our clients.”
“We believe cross border Africa – India business opportunities represent enormous potential for both African companies doing business in or with India, as well as, Indian companies looking at investing or expanding into Africa.
For the benefit of our clients and prospects we are bringing together our premier networks in Africa and India in the Africa-India Advisory Desk – a single point of contact that draws on Burson-Marsteller’s global expertise and local knowledge to enable business opportunities across national frontiers– into the African continent or Indian sub-continent,” said Jeremy Galbraith, CEO Burson-Marsteller Europe Middle East & Africa (EMEA).
Enhanced economic, political, social and cultural cooperation between India and Africa has promise and potential is self-evident from the fact that India and Africa together account for a huge market of 2.2 billion people with a combined GDP of more than $3 trillion.
According to a recent CII-WTO report on India-Africa: South-South Trade and Investment for Development, India-Africa bilateral trade has grown from $1 billion in 2001 to around $50 billion in 2011-12. At the same time, India’s investments in Africa are estimated to be over $50 billion now.
“Globally, interest and opportunity in Africa is unprecedented. However, doing business in Africa is complex and can be daunting. Doing business in India can be similarly challenging.
The Africa-India Advisory Desk, building on the strengths of our African hub and our Indian hub, we believe, can help our clients achieve business success in both markets,” adds Prema Sagar, Principal and Founder of Genesis Burson-Marsteller.