Chairman of the Federation of the Egyptian Chambers of Commerce (FEDCOC) Ahmed el Wakeel on Sunday called on the Egyptian businessmen to explore "promising opportunities" in the African markets.

Businessmen now have a political cover and had no justification for the lack of strong economic presence in Africa, Wakeel told MENA on the sidelines of the Africa 2016 Forum.

The forum represents a strong message to businessmen that it is time to widely enter the African markets, he added.

Africa 2016 is held under the patronage of President Abdel Fattah El Sisi on February 20-21 in Sharm el Sheikh.

The forum is organized by the ministries of investment, foreign affairs, supply and internal trade and international cooperation in collaboration with COMESA, said a statement by the cabinet on Friday.

It discusses various economic issues such as joint investments in infrastructure, agricultural projects, communications, information technology and medical care.