NAIROBI, Kenya – Nairobi will host more than 500 CEOs, investors, policymakers and senior business leaders when the inaugural EABC East Africa CEO & Investment Forum 2026 takes place on September 17 and 18, 2026.
The high-level forum, organised by the East African Business Council (EABC) in partnership with the East African Development Bank (EADB) and the East African Community (EAC) Secretariat, will bring together regional and international business leaders to discuss trade, investment and economic competitiveness.
The organisers have positioned the forum as a deal-focused business platform, rather than a conventional conference centred mainly on speeches and networking.
According to EABC, the forum will connect capital with credible investment opportunities while giving businesses, governments and investors a platform to develop partnerships and close deals.
The two-day forum will focus on investment opportunities across East Africa and create direct engagement between businesses, investors and governments.
One of its key components will be Business-to-Business (B2B) and Business-to-Government (B2G) matchmaking.
Through the matchmaking sessions, companies will meet potential investors and strategic partners, while investors will have an opportunity to examine prepared projects and investment opportunities across the region.
EABC has described the initiative as a practical platform designed to move discussions beyond identifying challenges and toward investment conversion, partnerships and transactions.
The forum will also feature sector-specific deal rooms, where investors and project owners can discuss opportunities and explore potential financing and partnerships.
The organisers have been preparing for the event through CEO and trade and investment roundtables across EAC partner states. These engagements are helping identify investment-ready projects and collect views from businesses on the barriers affecting regional trade and investment.
EABC expects more than 500 high-level participants to attend the Nairobi forum.
The delegation will include regional and international CEOs, institutional and private investors, development finance institutions, investment promotion agencies, policymakers and development partners. The forum will also attract international investors, including a special delegation of about 50 European Union investors.
EABC said the EU delegation will include business leaders from Germany and other European markets interested in exploring opportunities in East Africa.
The forum will focus on sectors that EABC considers important to East Africa’s economic growth and investment potential.
These include agriculture and agro-processing, manufacturing, digital technology and artificial intelligence, energy, tourism, logistics, health and pharmaceuticals, critical raw materials and trade.
The EABC has also identified carbon credits and other emerging investment areas as priorities.
The forum will give priority to businesses operating in key growth sectors and will provide opportunities for CEOs to participate as speakers, panelists and strategic contributors.
Beyond attracting investment, the forum will examine some of the obstacles that continue to limit trade within East Africa.
Business leaders across the region have repeatedly raised concerns over non-tariff barriers, inefficient border processes, high logistics costs, regulatory inconsistencies, limited financing and challenges in moving goods and services across borders.
EABC’s recent CEO roundtables have sought practical solutions to these problems ahead of the Nairobi forum.
The organisation has called for governments and businesses to move from policy commitments to implementation, with particular attention to border efficiency, digital systems, cross-border payments, regional value chains and the implementation of existing EAC agreements.
The discussions from the country-level roundtables will feed into the forum’s policy conversations.
One of the key activities at the Nairobi forum will be the launch of the Annual EAC Trade and Investment Climate Report.
The report will provide evidence and analysis on the region’s trade and investment environment and is expected to inform discussions on how governments can create a more predictable and competitive environment for businesses.
EABC has been collecting views from private-sector leaders in different EAC countries as part of the preparation for the report.
The findings will help identify practical reforms needed to improve the business environment and strengthen regional integration.
The forum will also provide a platform for Kenya to showcase investment opportunities in sectors such as technology, agriculture, manufacturing, energy, logistics and tourism.
