Ivor Ichikowitz, Executive Chairman of Paramount Group, Hails New era of Opportunity Driven by Africa’s Defence and Aerospace Industry

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Welcome to Paramount Group’s virtual exhibition space for Africa Aerospace & Defence (AAD) 2010.

AAD is the largest defence conference in Africa and we invite you to tour our special AAD pages to find out more about what Paramount Group will be saying and unveiling this year.

Paramount Group is proudly African to its core – and we therefore make a big deal of AAD. It is an ideal opportunity for African nations to come together, share ideas and discuss solutions to some of the continents most intractable problems.

Part of that process involves sharing the latest technology.

The days when defence equipment and technical know-how were restricted to a few major players are – thankfully – long gone, and Paramount Group is eager to play its part in sharing the best defence equipment with the rest of the world.

This year Paramount Group will unveil a brand new high-mobility armoured infantry vehicle that promises to take the market by storm. Ideal for a wide variety of military deployments in challenging environments, the armoured vehicle will offer some of the best levels of protection against IEDs and land mines.

The new vehicle is also a watershed moment for Africa: it shows that Africa can compete on a technical level with some of the world’s biggest defence players and gives credence to the view that Africa is emerging as an important international player in the defence market.

This means Africa can now compete with the major Western suppliers and export abroad. The defence and aerospace industry is an asset of the African continent and our vision has always been to use it as a driver for growth and development as Africa moves into a new era of optimism and opportunity.

African companies such as Paramount Group are not only competing on an international level, with interest from governments in Africa, the Middle East and Asia, but also offering better in-country benefits for purchasers.

Whereas the Western majors manufacture their equipment far from the destination market, Paramount Group takes an ‘in country’ approach establishing production facilities in regional markets.

This ensures that the economic and development benefits associated with the process of production, training and marketing help the local population not just the shareholders in New York or London.

We are certain that this is a time of great opportunity - and it is opportunity driven by Africa and the developing world. 

A young, innovative and entrepreneurial business such as ours is ideally placed to answer the challenge which this new era of opportunity presents and we look forward to making Africa and the world a better place through enhanced security and greater economic opportunities for all.