Borouge, a leading petrochemical company that provides innovative and differentiated polyolefin solutions, has entered into a distribution agreement with one of the biggest polyolefin distributors in East Africa, Somochem.
The agreement builds on a long-standing partnership between Borouge and Somochem and aims to increase Borouge’s footprint and presence in East Africa. The development comes on the back of Borouge’s significant growth in market share in the region over the past five years. The company conducted targeted marketing and sales campaigns in the region, with a strong focus
on Kenya, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Uganda, and Rwanda – the fastest-growing countries in the region by GDP. According to the African Development Bank, economic growth in East Africa is projected to reach 5% in 2023 and 5.4% in 2024. Market demand has been driven by rapid and substantial infrastructure investment, healthcare improvements, rising living standards, and urbanization. More than 112 million people in the region do not have access to clean water according to Unicef, demonstrating the pressing need for high-quality infrastructure development.
Khalfan AlMuhairi, Senior Vice President, Region MEAE, Borouge, commented: “We identified a gap in the region for multiple premium solutions, enabling us to unlock opportunities to grow our market share over the next five years.
“In 2022, we increased our sales of advanced packaging solutions in East Africa to reach AED496million, and sales of energy and infrastructure solutions to AED184m, demonstrating our position as a reliable and trusted partner to the region’s biggest brands and distributors. “We are bullish on the future growth in East Africa.” The region has an estimated population of half a billion people and is one of the fastest-growing economies in the world, with many global consumer brands capitalizing on growth and partnering with Borouge to develop premium and recyclable products.