The E-Business International Summit returns to Dakar for its second edition on November 26 and 27, this time with a structured Business and Investment Deal Room designed to turn networking into actual transactions between companies, investors and regional partners.
The event will run at the CICES exhibition centre, a different venue from the inaugural 2025 edition held at the Grand Théâtre National Doudou Ndiaye Coumba Rose. Organisers are expecting more than 1,000 participants from over 15 countries and more than 25 speakers.
In a statement, EBIS president Assane Pathe Diop said the Deal Room is deliberately intended to create structured meetings between companies, startups, technology providers and potential partners, rather than relying only on conventional conference networking. This, according to the organisers, will provide a perfect platform for facilitated introductions.
EBIS 2026 is organised around e-commerce, logistics, digital solutions and artificial intelligence, with sessions expected to cover the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System, cross-border supply chains, last-mile delivery, fintech and social commerce.
The programme reflects a sector still working through structural obstacles; cross-border e-commerce in Africa remains constrained by fragmented payment systems, inconsistent customs processes and high logistics costs that make it expensive for small and medium enterprises to sell beyond their home markets.
The inaugural June 2025 edition was framed as the launch of a travelling summit intended to rotate to a different African city each year. EBIS 2026 instead returns to Dakar, with organisers positioning the city as the summit’s base as it scales up rather than following through on the original one-city-per-year format.
The E-Business International Summit is a Pan-African gathering dedicated to e-commerce, logistics, digital solutions and digital entrepreneurship, bringing together decision-makers, innovators and investors involved in shaping the continent’s digital economy. Launched in Dakar, it is working to establish itself as a recurring fixture on the region’s business calendar, with the 2026 edition marking its second outing.
Confirmed partners include e-commerce platform Jumia and investment firm Morana Impact and Capital, alongside CICES as host venue.
The summit is still open to more sponsors, exhibitors, startups, institutions, delegations and media. The summit organisers have also extended official invitations to not only Senegalese and West African media outlets as official media partners but also Pan-African outlets, in return offering accreditation and interview access to speakers and exhibitors in exchange.
The first edition established contacts and visibility for EBIS as a new fixture on the West African business calendar, and the addition of a formal Deal Room in 2026 gives companies, investors and startups a more direct route to the signed partnerships, funding commitments and new market entries the summit is now positioning itself to deliver.
Registration for sponsors, exhibitors and delegates remains open ahead of the November 26-27 event at CICES Dakar.
Africa Global News publication.