14/07/2026
Yesterday, CBC in partnership with CareEdge Africa, successfully convened a high-level webinar on "Hormuz Conundrum: How the 2026 Middle East Crisis is Reshaping COMESA Economies and Business."
In his opening remarks, CBC-CEO Teddy Soobramanien PhD (Law) underscored that the Middle East crisis extends beyond a geopolitical issue it is a business issue with far-reaching implications for the COMESA region.
He emphasized the importance of strengthening regional value chains, accelerating intra-COMESA trade, and investing in resilient supply chains to enable businesses to better withstand future global shocks.
Providing the economic outlook, Sanroy Seechurn, Senior Economist at CareEdge Africa, highlighted the crisis' potential impact on hashtag economies, including rising fuel and energy costs, food security challenges, disruptions to aviation and tourism, pressures on key shipping corridors, and increased risks to finance and investment.
The webinar discussions highlighted the need to:
✔️Strengthen regional value chains and intra-COMESA trade.
✔️Enhance business resilience through diversification and risk management.
✔️Leverage regional cooperation to mitigate external economic shocks.
✔️Build adaptive policies that support sustainable private sector growth.
We sincerely thank our distinguished moderator Dr christopher onyango, panelists Mr. Vidhyasagar Lingesan, CFA, FRM, Chief Rating Officer, CareEdge Africa, Mrs. Sindiso Valerie Ndlovu Political Risk Analyst, ATIDI - African Trade & Investment Development Insurance), Mr. Hunain Khan, Head of FCL & Trade Management – Middle East & Africa at DHL, and Mr Anthony S Mwithiga, MSCI-Senior Advisor- Trade and Development Bank Group - TDB Group.
Thank you to everyone who joined us for this timely discussion