IAMZ Director, Javier Sierra, participated in the 14th edition of the North African Business Development Forum (NABDF), organized on 22 November in Barcelona by the Association of Chambers of Commerce and Industry of the Mediterranean (ASCAME) and the European Institute of the Mediterranean (IEMed). The NABDF took place in the framework of the 11th Mediterranean Week of Economics Leaders (MedaWeek Barcelona).

Javier Sierra took part as a panellist in the session "Agribusiness: Engine for growth, business and economic development" – chaired by  Bahattin Gönültaş, Deputy Editor of Anadolu Agency Economy News – together with Josep Tejedo (Managing Director of Mercabarna), Abdelrrahim Benyassine (Director of Aggregation and Partnership at the Agency for Agricultural Development in Morocco), Gerardo Patacconi (Officer-in-Charge of the Department of Agricultural Development at United Nations Industrial Development Organization UNIDO), Hassan Sentissi El Idrissi (President of the  Moroccan Association of Exporters, Asmex) and Antonella Autino (Project Manager at PRIMA, Partnership in Research and Innovation in the Mediterranean Area Initiative).

During the session Sierra spoke about IAMZ’s solid experience as a centre of educational excellence with a track record of 50 years in post graduate training. He highlighted the unique opportunities offered by the MSc programme in Agro-Food Marketing as a forum for cultural exchange, dialogue and understanding, bringing together students from all over the world and teachers from Europe and the US.  Furthermore, he met key actors in the region, such as the projects' team at ASCAME and other agents working in South-South cooperation. It was particularly interesting to see how different business activities developed in North Africa could be projected into the South.