The FIHAV (Feria Internacional de la Habana) dates for 2018 have been announced. FIHAV 2018, the 36th edition, is scheduled to open October 29 and run until November 2 in Arroyo Naranjo (25 km southeast of Havana) at the ExpoCuba Fairgrounds.
The event is hosted by ProCuba, PALCO, Cámara de Comercio de la República de Cuba, and the Ministerio del Comercio Exterior y la Inversión Extranjera.
ExpoCuba covers 21,700 sq m of area offering plenty of display space for international businesses that want to enter the Cuban market and trade with Cuba. Each participating country has its own pavilion whereby companies, working with their own government’s commercial department or embassy, have the opportunity to open up a booth and/or display area.
At the 2017 FIHAV, large exhibitors included 365 national corporations from Cuba, Canada (massive presence), China (massive presence) and Spain (four separate pavilions). Other countries that had pavilions at this trade event were South Africa, Italy, Portugal, Venezuela, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates, Japan, Thailand, Curacao, Russia and Bulgaria.
Last year’s U.S. organizations and businesses included USA Rice, USA Egg and Poultry Export Council, U.S. Cava Exports and JetBlue. This list is by no means exhaustive.
The FIHAV is regarded as the ideal venue for the development of new business opportunities in the Cuban – Caribbean – Latin American market. The trade fair is the most significant commerce and multi-industry trade event to be held in Cuba each year. It has become more and more popular each year since its beginnings over three and a half decades ago.
In 2017, the exhibitions showcased a broad variety of commodities/products and technologies, such as food items (seeds), automotive components, domestic appliances, agriculture, wood and forest products, furniture, building materials, tractors, gas and oil technology, healthcare technology, pharmaceutical products, life sciences, infrastructure, ocean technologies, mining, sustainable technologies, professional services, tourism, aerospace technology, liquors and wines, and transportation.
Big multinational companies are vying to locate and nurture fresh investments and markets with Cuba. More than a thousand corporations from seventy countries took part in FIHAV last year.
ProCuba representatives alongside ZED Mariel project specialists had a notable presence in 2016 and 2017.
Also, national corporations from Cuba are present at FIHAV. Big pharmaceutical and biotechnology firms, like BioCuba Pharma, Heber Biotech SA and Comercializadora de Servicios Médicos Cubanos, S.A. (CSMC S.A.), all have exhibition space.
Other brands from Cuba, some more familiar than others such as national oil firm CUPET, Empresa de Bedidas y Refrescos of Pinar del Rio, Castrol and Confihar Cuba, S.A., BioCubaFarma, , Cerveza Tinima Cervasas y Maltas, Quimimpex Import and Export, and Montecristo cigars operate booths in the Cuban pavilion.
It is crucial to attend the FIHAV if a company is considering the Cuban market. Operating a booth in a pavilion of your country is a good way of gaining exposure and connecting with trading partners.
Opening day speeches are given by leading government officials. Most important, the Minister of Ministry Of Foreign Trade and Investment (MINCEX) will present the new Portfolio of Opportunities for Foreign Investment.
Zoe Veraz is a content writer, freelance journalist and regular contributor to the Cuba Business Report.
