International aid organizations play a key part in the commodity value chain throughout the world, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa as illustrated in the pie chart on the right. Due to their reliance on donors, it is crucial that these aid agencies maintain supply chains that minimize risk and wastage. Vallis Commodities researcher Fergus Witt has compiled a report into these organizations, covering their history, Read More
At the end of February, I attended the IFC’s 7th Global Partners Conference in Milan having been invited to speak as a panellist at the event. The title of the conference was “Striving in Turbulent Times”, which seemed very apt. The mood was sombre as shown by the topics for various sessions: “Is Volatility The New Normal?” “The Spectre of Capital Flight.” “Rethinking Risk in Emerging Market Banking and Trade.” “SurRead More
Vallis Commodities is pleased to announce the recent addition of Marine and Cargo Services to the range of logistic services that it offers customers. The first Marine and Cargo Service operations were successfully completed in December 2015 in Beira, Mozambique. The services are now also available in Ghana, Kenya, Senegal and Tanzania and further expansion in West Africa will continue in the coming months. The new sRead More
Kit Aid is a charity that distributes old and new football kit to children and adults in some of the world’s poorest countries. Vallis Commodities has partnered with Kit Aid to assist with the distribution of the kit in some of the communities in which we operate in Africa. In October 2015, 2 Vallis staff, Imogen and Charles, participated in a boxing up session at Kit Aid headquarters in the UK. On the day, 197 boxesRead More
Since 2006, Vallis has managed over 16 million tonnes of commodities worth almost $11bn across Africa and the Middle East. Forty percent of this, 6.4 million tonnes, was handled in 2015 alone making it our busiest year so far. To ensure we still meet the highest standards, we have increased our number of employees from 448 in January 2015 to 737 now. We are looking forward to managing even more commodities in 2016, aRead More
On 17th December 2015, Dr Edward George, Head of Group Research at Ecobank, visited Vallis Commodities Limited and provided Vallis staff with an insight into the current outlook for commodities in Africa. He separated his presentation into three separate areas: 1. The outlook for global commodities 2. Soft commodities in Sub-Saharan Africa 3. The challenge of financing the commodity value chain in Sub-Saharan Africa Read More
Happy New Year 2016 from everyone at Vallis Commodities. To start the year Vallis has produced a new 2 minute company video. This video shows details of our operations across Africa and the Middle East, including: The services we offer. The countries where we work. The commodities we manage. Our strengths. Some key Vallis statistics. Read More
Happy Christmas and Joyeux Noël from everyone at Vallis Commodities Limited. 2015 has been another successful year for Vallis, with a growth in operations across Africa and the Middle East. We have increased our presence in the region, expanding into Angola, Jordan and Guinea-Bissau. At this time of year it is important to think of those who are less fortunate than ourselves so, as part of our ongoing commitment to tRead More
On 19th November, I met with a large team from the IFC (International Finance Corporation), part of the World Bank Group, in Washington DC. The team was led by: Makiko Tayoda – Product Manager Yasmin Saadat – Chief Investment Officer, Trade and Commodities Finance Hyung K. Ahn – Global Head, Trade and Commodities. Wide ranging discussions were held on current challenges to the structured trade markeRead More
Nigeria has long been one of Vallis’s most important areas of operation, with over 2 million tonnes of goods managed in the country since 2010. In March, the Nigerian general election resulted in Muhammadu Buhari replacing Goodluck Jonathan as President – the first time an incumbent president has lost an election in Nigeria. Earlier in November, several months after taking office, President Buhari Read More