In partnership with the Tunisian Foreign Investment Promotion Agency (FIPA) (www.InvestInTunisia.tn), the USAID-financed Business Reform & Competitiveness Project (BRCP) sponsored a pioneering webinar to bring together Supplier Management representatives from Boeing Defense, Space & Security (www.Boeing.com/defense) and Tunisian aerospace manufacturers.

Boeing presented eligibility requirements and a road map for what it takes to become a Boeing supplier, after which FIPA provided an overview of the Tunisian aerospace industry.  In this regard, there are over 70 companies in the aerospace industry in Tunisia, primarily supplying European Union markets.  FIPA also presented Tunisia’s value proposition, driven by a highly competitive cost structure and an excellent training infrastructure, which continues to produce highly trained engineers and technical specialists.  The presentation also highlighted the cutting edge aerospace production capacity which exists in Tunisia, including a Tunisian light plane manufactured for international markets.

Four Tunisian aerospace companies presented their operations and products. Each company highlighted their technical and quality management capabilities across a broad array of aerospace supply chain activities that included assembly, engineering, metal sheet fabrication, precision mechanics, mechatronics, electronics boxes, aero-structures, wire harnesses, aircraft interiors and technical plastics.

The event provided a unique opportunity for a number of high tech Tunisian enterprises to communicate directly with the US aerospace leader and to receive valuable feedback as they look to expand brand visibility in international markets.  As the session came to a close, the representatives of Boeing, FIPA, and the Tunisian companies agreed to continue their dialogue. The webinar represents a successful first step towards the establishment of aerospace business linkages with Boeing.