In the accord between the Brazilian Association of Refrigeration, Air Conditioning and Heating (Abrava) and the Brazilian Export and investment Promotion Agency (Apex-Brasil), Algeria, Libya, Morocco and Tunisia have been defined as target markets for the sector.
The idea is to allow the companies to participate in the Abrava Exporta program, through which 34 companies should export US$ 2.7 million up to March 2010.
Apart from considering sales to 21 countries that companies in the area have already prospected, the program also forecasts actions in new markets like North Africa, and Bulgaria, Poland, Romania and the Ukraine, in Eastern Europe. Among the actions forecasted are market studies, business roundtables, participation in foreign fairs and the promotion of a selling project.
This is the third renewal of the agreement between the Abrava and Apex-Brasil. According to the technical manager at Abrava Exporta, Leila Vasconcelos, the focus on North Africa was a request of the companies participating in the program, who are interested in the market. The program had already focused, since its early phases, on another area of the Arab world: the United Arab Emirates.
In November 2006, sector representatives visited Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah, on a trade mission, and two companies participated in the Big 5 Show, a building sector fair that takes place each year in Dubai.
This year, according to Vasconcelos, there should also be participation of a Brazilian sector company in the Big 5, to take place between November 23 and 27. The Emirates are still the focus of the program.
In the first phase of the program, between 2004 and 2006, the sector exported US$ 1.2 million. In the second phase, between 2006 and 2007, exports reached US$ 2.4 million. The target, according to Abrava, was US$ 1.7 million for the second phase of the program. The figures do not show sector exports as a whole, but only foreign sales of the companies participating in the project.
From 2006 to 2007, the companies in Abrava Exporta exhibited their products in 14 international fairs in Latin America, the Middle East, Europe and the United States. Three trade delegations, two international business roundtables and four market studies were also promoted.
Anba