The 122nd edition of the Foire de Paris opened its doors this Thursday at Paris Expo Porte de Versailles, and Central Africa is playing an unprecedented role this year. Over twelve days, until May 11, more than 400,000 visitors are expected across 100,000 sqm of exhibition space, featuring 1,250 exhibitors and 50 international destinations. For economic stakeholders in the CEMAC zone, the event marks a turning point: for the first time in its history, Cameroon has a dedicated pavilion, named “Cameroun Opportunities”.
A trade event with impressive figures
France’s largest general-interest trade fair has lost none of its commercial firepower. The event consistently generates over €260 million in revenue, with an average basket estimated at €665 per visitor during the 2025 edition — and up to €1,117 for visitors arriving with a renovation or interior design project. One detail captures the DNA of the fair: nine out of ten visitors make at least one purchase.
The 2026 edition, presented as a relaunch year, organizes its offering around four complementary events accessible with a single ticket: Home & Co Paris (300 home-furnishing brands), World in Paris (700 international exhibitors), Auto Mobil Paris (5,000 sqm dedicated to mobility, up 65% from 2025), and the major novelty of the year, Made in Paris, a 15,000 sqm space showcasing French craftsmanship.
In total, more than 1,000 hours of free entertainment will animate these twelve days, turning Porte de Versailles into the largest pop-up restaurant in the capital.
The international space: the fair’s main traffic driver
A critical insight for CEMAC players: it is the international space that draws, by volume, the largest share of visitors. Its surface area expands by 60% compared to 2025, reaching 25,000 sqm. This expansion confirms the appetite of the Parisian and international public for discovering global destinations, crafts, and culinary specialties.
Steven Abajoli, Director of the Foire de Paris, summed up the spirit of the edition by saying organizers want “to bring the world to the gates of Paris” — at a time when traveling far remains, for many European households, more complicated and more expensive. Translated into business opportunities, this means African exhibitors enjoy direct access to a warm, prescriptive audience ready to spend: the Crafts & World Cultures section is, year after year, the most visited area of the fair, attracting more than 50% of visitors with an average basket of around €400.
“Cameroun Opportunities”: a historic first for CEMAC
This is undoubtedly the most significant news of the edition for cemac-eco.finance readers: Cameroon has, for the first time, a fully dedicated pavilion, named Cameroun Opportunities. Organized around three areas — crafts, culture, and business — the pavilion highlights creators, producers, and local initiatives, while showcasing investment opportunities and economic cooperation prospects with the country.
This strengthened presence comes as Yaoundé has been multiplying international positioning operations since the start of the year: the Investing in Africa 2026 forum in April, the Annual Show dedicated to Cameroonian fashion in Paris, and Finance Week 2026 held the same April 30 in Yaoundé under the theme “Private Investment: Building CEMAC’s New Economic Power.” Within this sequence, the Foire de Paris stands as the public-facing showcase of a more assertive Cameroonian economic diplomacy.
Senegal, through ASEPEX (the Senegalese Export Promotion Agency), is also presenting the wealth of its local sectors and craftsmanship. From the CEMAC zone, Congo is also among the African countries represented, alongside Algeria, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Egypt, Kenya, Madagascar, Mali, Morocco, Mauritania, Niger, Rwanda, and Tunisia.
The Africa Talents Village: a business springboard
Another strong marker of this edition: the powerful return of the Africa Talents Village (Village Talents d’Afrique), a true hybrid hub that blends business, culture, and sensory experiences. Throughout the twelve days of the event, the space will pulse to the rhythm of fashion shows, live concerts, culinary demonstrations, and meetings with cultural entrepreneurs from across the continent.
Among the 2026 award winners, several names worth following closely:
- Awawoafrica (Malawi), specialized in sustainable bamboo craftsmanship;
- Trésors des Savanes (Côte d’Ivoire), which promotes local natural resources;
- Inherited Games Studio (Tunisia), an innovative studio combining virtual reality, augmented reality, and gaming.
The Festival des Tropiques, Europe’s largest Afro-Caribbean festival, completes this presence with more than 60 free shows — concerts, parades, carnivals — including dedicated days for African and overseas territories.
Key takeaways for CEMAC economic stakeholders
For companies, institutions, and investors in the CEMAC zone, Foire de Paris 2026 sends several strong signals:
- A unique consumer-facing channel to the European market: 400,000 visitors in 12 days, with 87% expressing interest in purchasing international products and discovering new destinations.
- The institutionalization of Cameroon’s presence through Cameroun Opportunities, which could serve as a model for other countries in the sub-region (Gabon, Chad, Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea) still absent from the framework.
- Alignment with the continental agenda: AfCFTA, sub-regional integration, economic diplomacy — all levers that African pavilions now translate into physical presence at major European trade shows.
- An average €400 basket in the international section, evidence that “cultural” purchasing has become a genuine consumer act, no longer a mere exotic gesture.
Practical information
- Dates: April 30 to May 11, 2026
- Venue: Paris Expo Porte de Versailles, 1 place de la Porte de Versailles, 75015 Paris
- Opening hours: daily from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.; late-night opening on Saturday, May 9 until 10 p.m.
- Open on the public holidays of May 1 and May 8
- Tickets: www.foiredeparis.fr
At a moment when CEMAC is debating — in Yaoundé as in Paris — the levers of a “new sub-regional economic power,” the Foire de Paris 2026 offers, beyond its festive attire, a real-world observation ground for Central African countries’ international positioning strategies. The Cameroun Opportunities pavilion alone is worth the visit.