Sudan’s economic ‘coming out’ party at the Paris conference was notable for the appetite of major African investors. Nigeria‘s Aliko Dangote says he is interested in investing in agribusiness, to target regional demand for flour.

The expression of interest by Nigeria’s leading agribusiness and cement investor in Sudan is grist to the mill of apostles of the African Continental Free Trade Area, who want to raise the level of intra-African trade up from a paltry 12%.

Vera Songwe, secretary general of the UN Economic Commission for Africa, is among the champions of AfCFTA. From the stage of the conference, she spotted the chairman of Dangote Industries Limited in the front row: “You know that when Dangote is here, there is serious business to be done.”