Rosoboronexport highlights sub-Saharan African order book

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Over the last year, Russian state holding company Rosoboronexport signed more than $1.7 billion worth of contracts in sub-Saharan Africa and it continues to pursue opportunities on the continent.

Ahead of the ShieldAfrica security and defence exhibition in Cote d’Ivoire this week, Rosoboronexport said “in 2020 and early 2021 alone, we signed contract documents worth over $1.7 billion in this region and brought the number of countries in Central, Western and Southern Africa in our order portfolio to 17.”

“Rosoboronexport is successfully continuing to foster military-technical cooperation with Sub-Saharan African countries, which received a strong impetus during the Russia-Africa Forum in 2019,” said Alexander Mikheev, Director General of Rosoboronexport. “Today, Rosoboronexport is marketing helicopters, air defence systems, naval products, armoured vehicles, equipment for law enforcement agencies, airport and critical infrastructure security equipment, small arms, including special weapons, in the region.”

Rosoboronexport will be attending ShieldAfrica 2021 at the Police Academy in Abidjan from 8 to 10 June.

During ShieldAfrica 2021, the Rosoboronexport delegation will hold meetings and negotiations with representatives of law enforcement agencies of numerous African countries, as well as deliver presentations on Russian-made products marketed by the company.

Among Russian products that the company’s specialists will showcase are the BTR-80, 80A and 82A armoured personnel carriers, Kalashnikov AK-100 and AK-200 series, AK-12 and AK-15 assault rifles and the NATO calibre AK-19 and AK-308 rifles. Countries will be provided with information about Russian anti-tank guided missile systems, including the Kornet-E and Kornet-EM systems, as well as 120 and 82 mm mortars.

In addition to the Rosoboronexport delegation, Russia will be represented by the Military Industrial Company (VPK), which will organize an exhibit with the full-scale VPK-233316 Tigr special armoured vehicle in the Raid configuration, VPK-39473 Strela light armoured and VPK-Ural multi-purpose armoured vehicles. These vehicles will be showcased at an exhibition on the African continent for the first time, Rosoboronexport said.

“We will also inform our partners that we have significantly expanded our capabilities and are actively developing the activities related to supply of Russian civilian products. Rosoboronexport, which enjoys high reputation in the government and business circles of African countries, acts as a ‘Single Window’ and guarantor of the correctness and reliability of transactions for both Russian manufacturers and foreign customers,” Mikheev added.

In order to promote civilian products in the world market for companies unexperienced in independent foreign trade activities, Rosoboronexport said it has set up a special division to organize the supply of civilian products.

Among the core export product groups are vehicles, seagoing/river vessels, medical supplies, civil and service weapons, process equipment, metallurgical and chemical products.

The company has already implemented several contracts for the supply of fire engines, civil helicopters, and security systems to various countries around the world, and a number of pre-contract negotiations are underway. Agreements on joint promotion of civilian products in the external market have been concluded with major Russian holding companies and are in force, Rosoboronexport said.