BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:unctad.org BEGIN:VEVENT UID:6af14a76014b2 DTSTART:20261030T060000Z SEQUENCE:0 TRANSP:OPAQUE DTEND:20261030T150000Z LOCATION:Kampala\, Uganda SUMMARY: 2nd East Africa Regional Sustainable Natural Fibres Symposium CLASS:PUBLIC DESCRIPTION:The 2nd East Africa Regional Sustainable Natural Fibres Symposi um 2026 will bring together public institutions\, businesses\, researchers \, financiers\, standards bodies\, producers and technology developers to advance an African-led agenda for sustainable natural and alternative fibr es.Hosted by the Uganda Industrial Research Institute (UIRI) in partnershi p with the East Africa Alternative Fibres Forum (EAAFF) and national and r egional partners\, the symposium reflects the growing ownership of this ag enda by institutions and innovators in the region. It will provide a platf orm for participants to identify shared priorities\, showcase locally deve loped solutions and build the partnerships needed to move from promising a pplications to competitive\, investable and regionally connected value cha ins.Held under the theme “Towards a Coordinated African Alternative Natu ral Fibre Platform\,” the symposium will focus on circular industrializa tion\, investment\, business partnerships\, trade\, standards and regional cooperation. It will bring particular attention to the potential for conv erting agricultural residues and other locally available biomass into high er-value products\, while strengthening the productive capacities needed t o retain more value\, knowledge\, skills and employment within East Africa .The event builds on the first regional symposium\, held in Nairobi in 202 5\, which brought together producers\, buyers and enabling institutions to map the natural-fibre ecosystem\, explore financing and market opportunit ies\, and open dialogue on regional industry coordination. The second symp osium will take this process forward through stronger national leadership\ , practical regional collaboration and a clearer focus on industrial scale -up.From agricultural residues to regional industriesAcross East Africa\, residues including banana pseudostems\, pineapple leaves and sisal waste a re frequently discarded\, left to decompose or burnt. Yet these materials can provide inputs for textiles\, homeware\, paper\, sanitary products\, h air extensions\, packaging and other applications. Their productive use ca n reduce waste and pollution while creating new sources of income and oppo rtunities for enterprise development.Capturing this opportunity requires m ore than the production of raw fibre. Competitive value chains depend on r eliable collection and aggregation systems\, appropriate machinery\, produ ct design\, testing facilities\, consistent quality\, entrepreneurial capa bilities\, access to finance and connections to domestic\, regional and in ternational markets.The symposium will therefore consider how East African countries can build the productive capacities required to process local f eedstocks into value-added materials and finished products. The objective is to help ensure that the region does not remain principally a supplier o f unprocessed biomass or fibre\, but develops the technological\, institut ional and commercial capabilities needed to retain a greater share of valu e locally.Standards as infrastructure for marketsStandards\, certification and conformity assessment will be central to the discussions. As alternat ive fibres enter applications such as clothing\, hair extensions\, househo ld products\, sanitary items\, packaging and other consumer goods\, produc ers and purchasers need confidence in material composition\, performance\, safety\, durability and environmental claims.Clear and credible standards can help innovative businesses demonstrate product quality\, reduce uncer tainty for investors and buyers\, support access to public procurement and export markets\, and protect markets against misleading or unsubstantiate d sustainability claims. Cooperation among national standards bodies can a lso reduce unnecessary regulatory fragmentation and support the developmen t of regional markets.The participation of the Uganda Bureau of Standards and other technical institutions will connect product innovation with the quality infrastructure needed for commercialization and scale. The event f lyer lists the Uganda Bureau of Standards\, universities\, enterprises and other organizations among the symposium partners.Linking natural fibres t o the transition beyond plasticsNatural fibres can contribute to the trans ition away from plastic-intensive products in selected applications\, incl uding packaging\, textiles\, household goods and sanitary products. The sy mposium will connect East Africa’s emerging fibre industries with relate d work by UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and the Sustainable Manufactur ing and Environmental Pollution (SMEP) Programme on non-plastic substitute s and environmentally sound production.These links include emerging work t owards a West Africa Plastic Substitutes Initiative (WAPAI)\, covering sta ndards and certification\, trade conditions and regional cooperation. Exch anges between East and West Africa can help identify practical approaches to material substitution while opening opportunities for African producers and manufacturers.Standards\, markets and regional value additionStandard s\, certification and conformity assessment will be central to the symposi um. Reliable standards can help producers demonstrate product safety\, qua lity\, performance and environmental integrity\, while giving buyers and i nvestors greater confidence in emerging materials.Regional cooperation can also help connect producers\, processors\, researchers\, manufacturers an d buyers across borders. The objective is to build the productive capaciti es required to transform locally available biomass into higher-value produ cts\, retaining more processing\, knowledge\, employment and economic valu e within the region.ObjectivesThe symposium will seek to:consolidate a nat ionally owned and regionally connected platform for sustainable natural fi bres\;showcase technologies\, enterprises\, products and research from Uga nda and the wider region\;identify commercially promising value chains and investment opportunities\;advance cooperation on standards\, certificatio n and conformity assessment\;strengthen links among producers\, processors \, manufacturers\, researchers\, investors and buyers\; andagree practical next steps towards a coordinated African alternative natural-fibre platfo rm.The symposium will bring together government institutions\, standards b odies\, research and technology organizations\, universities\, producers\, manufacturers\, financial institutions\, buyers\, business associations a nd development partners. Participation is in person only and requires appr oval by organizers.    Institutional announcements by partners can be fo und here:  UIRI\, EAAFF\, NDISI.https://lnkd.in/p/edQJHxQD\n\nView meetin g on unctad.org\nhttps://unctad.org/meeting/2nd-east-africa-regional-susta inable-natural-fibres-symposium DTSTAMP:20261109T042214Z END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT UID:6af14a7601508 DTSTART:20261031T060000Z SEQUENCE:0 TRANSP:OPAQUE DTEND:20261031T150000Z LOCATION:Kampala\, Uganda SUMMARY: 2nd East Africa Regional Sustainable Natural Fibres Symposium CLASS:PUBLIC DESCRIPTION:The 2nd East Africa Regional Sustainable Natural Fibres Symposi um 2026 will bring together public institutions\, businesses\, researchers \, financiers\, standards bodies\, producers and technology developers to advance an African-led agenda for sustainable natural and alternative fibr es.Hosted by the Uganda Industrial Research Institute (UIRI) in partnershi p with the East Africa Alternative Fibres Forum (EAAFF) and national and r egional partners\, the symposium reflects the growing ownership of this ag enda by institutions and innovators in the region. It will provide a platf orm for participants to identify shared priorities\, showcase locally deve loped solutions and build the partnerships needed to move from promising a pplications to competitive\, investable and regionally connected value cha ins.Held under the theme “Towards a Coordinated African Alternative Natu ral Fibre Platform\,” the symposium will focus on circular industrializa tion\, investment\, business partnerships\, trade\, standards and regional cooperation. It will bring particular attention to the potential for conv erting agricultural residues and other locally available biomass into high er-value products\, while strengthening the productive capacities needed t o retain more value\, knowledge\, skills and employment within East Africa .The event builds on the first regional symposium\, held in Nairobi in 202 5\, which brought together producers\, buyers and enabling institutions to map the natural-fibre ecosystem\, explore financing and market opportunit ies\, and open dialogue on regional industry coordination. The second symp osium will take this process forward through stronger national leadership\ , practical regional collaboration and a clearer focus on industrial scale -up.From agricultural residues to regional industriesAcross East Africa\, residues including banana pseudostems\, pineapple leaves and sisal waste a re frequently discarded\, left to decompose or burnt. Yet these materials can provide inputs for textiles\, homeware\, paper\, sanitary products\, h air extensions\, packaging and other applications. Their productive use ca n reduce waste and pollution while creating new sources of income and oppo rtunities for enterprise development.Capturing this opportunity requires m ore than the production of raw fibre. Competitive value chains depend on r eliable collection and aggregation systems\, appropriate machinery\, produ ct design\, testing facilities\, consistent quality\, entrepreneurial capa bilities\, access to finance and connections to domestic\, regional and in ternational markets.The symposium will therefore consider how East African countries can build the productive capacities required to process local f eedstocks into value-added materials and finished products. The objective is to help ensure that the region does not remain principally a supplier o f unprocessed biomass or fibre\, but develops the technological\, institut ional and commercial capabilities needed to retain a greater share of valu e locally.Standards as infrastructure for marketsStandards\, certification and conformity assessment will be central to the discussions. As alternat ive fibres enter applications such as clothing\, hair extensions\, househo ld products\, sanitary items\, packaging and other consumer goods\, produc ers and purchasers need confidence in material composition\, performance\, safety\, durability and environmental claims.Clear and credible standards can help innovative businesses demonstrate product quality\, reduce uncer tainty for investors and buyers\, support access to public procurement and export markets\, and protect markets against misleading or unsubstantiate d sustainability claims. Cooperation among national standards bodies can a lso reduce unnecessary regulatory fragmentation and support the developmen t of regional markets.The participation of the Uganda Bureau of Standards and other technical institutions will connect product innovation with the quality infrastructure needed for commercialization and scale. The event f lyer lists the Uganda Bureau of Standards\, universities\, enterprises and other organizations among the symposium partners.Linking natural fibres t o the transition beyond plasticsNatural fibres can contribute to the trans ition away from plastic-intensive products in selected applications\, incl uding packaging\, textiles\, household goods and sanitary products. The sy mposium will connect East Africa’s emerging fibre industries with relate d work by UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and the Sustainable Manufactur ing and Environmental Pollution (SMEP) Programme on non-plastic substitute s and environmentally sound production.These links include emerging work t owards a West Africa Plastic Substitutes Initiative (WAPAI)\, covering sta ndards and certification\, trade conditions and regional cooperation. Exch anges between East and West Africa can help identify practical approaches to material substitution while opening opportunities for African producers and manufacturers.Standards\, markets and regional value additionStandard s\, certification and conformity assessment will be central to the symposi um. Reliable standards can help producers demonstrate product safety\, qua lity\, performance and environmental integrity\, while giving buyers and i nvestors greater confidence in emerging materials.Regional cooperation can also help connect producers\, processors\, researchers\, manufacturers an d buyers across borders. The objective is to build the productive capaciti es required to transform locally available biomass into higher-value produ cts\, retaining more processing\, knowledge\, employment and economic valu e within the region.ObjectivesThe symposium will seek to:consolidate a nat ionally owned and regionally connected platform for sustainable natural fi bres\;showcase technologies\, enterprises\, products and research from Uga nda and the wider region\;identify commercially promising value chains and investment opportunities\;advance cooperation on standards\, certificatio n and conformity assessment\;strengthen links among producers\, processors \, manufacturers\, researchers\, investors and buyers\; andagree practical next steps towards a coordinated African alternative natural-fibre platfo rm.The symposium will bring together government institutions\, standards b odies\, research and technology organizations\, universities\, producers\, manufacturers\, financial institutions\, buyers\, business associations a nd development partners. Participation is in person only and requires appr oval by organizers.    Institutional announcements by partners can be fo und here:  UIRI\, EAAFF\, NDISI.https://lnkd.in/p/edQJHxQD\n\nView meetin g on unctad.org\nhttps://unctad.org/meeting/2nd-east-africa-regional-susta inable-natural-fibres-symposium DTSTAMP:20261109T042214Z END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR