South Sudan became the world’s newest nation when it achieved independence on 9th July 2011. From the very outset, the Government of the Republic of South Sudan knew that despite its wealth of natural resources, it must work with the international private-sector regarding an investment of expertise and experience. This truly unique ‘emerging market’ needs to greatly develop all major sectors from infrastructure to ICT, tourism, petroleum & mining, transportation, defence and many more.

The Government of the Republic of South Sudan began by making public-private sector partnerships (PPP’s) a primary focus and part of its legislation. The Ministry of Commerce, Industry & Investment created a One-Stop-Shop as an all-encompassing solution for investors looking to set-up business in South Sudan whilst they established new investment laws and tax breaks in line with the western world to attract international investors. The Government decided to hold the nation’s first ever in-country Investment Summit where senior representatives of the Government detailed their long-term plans for each Ministry and the country as a whole. Delegates attending the Summit also benefited from the unique opportunity of one-to-one meetings with these key stakeholders.

As Exigent Events’ founder, Elliott Kayser played a leading role in the success of the Republic of South Sudan’s first in-country Investment Summit. From the Summits’ conception, Elliott’s desire to set a world-class standard in South Sudan was always the objective whilst working with a minimal budget and tight time scale. Elliott gained the Governments approval to organise and facilitate their first in-country Investment Summit. A close rapport was established with the Office of the President and the Ministry of Commerce, Industry & Investment which helped keep the event on track. Elliott identified a suitable venue that would provide enough space for the large attendance, have secure and reliable access and above all a clean and professional impression to the attending international investors. This event brief included the use of local third party suppliers wherever possible; including the sourcing of materials and furniture suppliers, catering services, stage and set builders, professional printers and local assistants many of which had not been used by the Government on such a large scale before. Elliott worked with local businesses and his sales team to ensure the appropriate organisations were in attendance across all major sectors.

Elliott provided the Summits' bespoke website which included the display of supporting Government letters, updates regarding South Sudan investment opportunities, profiles of official Summit participants i.e. various Ministries and major sponsors, and the Summits’ Official Agenda. Additionally and as an integral part of the Summits’ bespoke website, Elliott managed and implemented Exigent Events industry leading Registration Management System to support Summit delegates and schedule over 1200 one-to-one roundtable meetings between the delegation of officials and attending international investors.

The three day Summit was a resounding success. The Government of the Republic of South Sudan had set out to present its unique business opportunities to the international community and meet face-to-face with those genuinely looking to aid the long-term economic development of South Sudan. The Summit welcomed more than 500 participants including cabinet-level Ministers and director generals, senior United Nations stakeholders, international corporation heads (many visiting South Sudan for the first time), and both local and international NGO leaders. In closing, Elliott led the production of a full post-summit report/brochure and interactive CD-ROM to summarise the Summits achievements and to allow the Government of South Sudan to showcase the world-class event that had successfully been held in one of the world’s truly ‘emerging markets’.