The World Rubber Summit is a major and concerted forum for discussions on strategic issues of the rubber economy, both natural and synthetic. This meeting was launched in Abidjan on June 08, 2021. The first virtual world rubber summit opened in the presence of Prime Minister Jerome Patrick Achi, high patron of the ceremony. According to him, even though the challenges of the sector have never been so numerous, the IRSG, which represents through its members nearly 3/4 of world production and consumption, is the key body in which to debate and advance the rubber tree like rubber.
"It is precisely because of the scale of these challenges and their importance, as regards the future of the sector, that we are honored that the IRSG is holding today its 1st Virtual World Rubber Summit on the Côte of ivory. We also see in this event the clear and strong recognition of the growing place taken by Africa in the world rubber economy. We are fully aware of this new role played by our continent, like our country,” he said in his speech.

According to the Minister, the rubber tree is extremely representative of this reality of sustained growth but also of the strength of a national ambition. The one who wants to transform agricultural sectors, develop the local processing industry, work on more sustainable crops and ultimately win the economic and human fight for added value from a sector that has an annual turnover of nearly 350 billion dollars worldwide, and of which Côte d'Ivoire captures only 0.5%, even though it provides nearly 7.5% of world production. Because more than 85% of the value of the sector is found, not in agricultural production, but in the processing and marketing of rubber.