South Africa to showcase its boat building capabilities in France

South Africa to showcase its boat building capabilities in France

[Paris, France, Tuesday 27 September, 2022]. The Grand Pavois International Boat Show will take place in La Rochelle, France, from 27 September to 3 October 2022. South Africa will be participating as the incoming Guest Country of Honour for the year 2023. The annual boat show attracts boatbuilders and other stakeholders from all over the world, including South African boatbuilders and manufacturers.

The Grand Pavois International Boat Show is the one of the biggest boat shows in the world, with exhibitions covering an area of 100,000 m2 at Port des Minimes in La Rochelle. This includes a representation of 800 international brands and 35 nations, 200 accredited international journalists, 750 boats on show, 250 new products and an intake of approximately 80 000 visitors every year. 

The show presents an important opportunity for international trade in this field and increasing bilateral trade with France as South Africa has one of the leading boatbuilding industries in the world. Furthermore, since the boat show is mainly for leisure boats, it is inextricably linked to tourism promotion. As such, the event also serves as an important platform through which we can promote South Africa’s tourism value proposition to an international market.

On this occasion, the Embassy of South Africa to France will be hosting a cocktail reception on 27 September 2022 for the official announcement of South Africa as the Guest Country of Honour in 2023, as well as an exhibition for promoting the South African brand and showcasing the country’s tourism offering and boatbuilding industry from 27 September to 3 October 2022. South Africa’s participation this year is a prelude to the main event of hosting a full country exhibition in a 700m2 pavilion at the Grand Pavois International Boat Show as the Guest Country of Honour in 2023.

Leading the South African delegation will be H.E. Tebogo Seokolo, South African Ambassador to France, Monaco and Permanent Delegate to UNESCO. The delegation will include other South African government agencies, South African Tourism Hub in France, Brand South Africa, South African Boat Builders Export Council (SABBEX) and the Western Cape Tourism, Trade and Investment Agency (WESGRO). 

For more enquiries, please contact:

Jimmy Ranamane 
Email: JimmyR@brandsouthafrica.com