THE RECENT French trade exhibition held at Midrand earlier this month produced deals worth more than R100m, according to French trade officials.
The exhibition was one of the largest of its kind ever to be held in SA and was intended to strengthen the profile of French products in southern Africa.
The exhibition greatly increased the presence of French companies active in SA from 125 to more than 200. Several major joint-ventures are being processed and the transfer of French technology will be given a boost by the number of deals concluded.
The French were particularly pleased with the response to the exhibition.
France has a high profile in central and western Africa, but its contact with southern Africa is negligible. It falls far behind SA's traditional trading partners like Britain, the USA and Germany.
Recently France was badly burned by its attempts to head off political upheaval in former colonies like Zaire and Congo. Analysts expect France to reappraise its involvement in countries where the political threat to its commercial and cultural interests outweigh the benefits.
