The 17th edition of the International Defence Industry Fair (IDEF) is taking place in Istanbul, Turkey, from July 22 to 27, 2025, drawing defence industry professionals, government officials, and military personnel from across the globe.
This renowned event serves as a platform to display cutting-edge defence technologies and encourage international collaboration. Among the participants is a South African delegation, led by Deputy Defence and Military Veterans Minister Bantu Holomisa, who is visiting the more than a dozen South African companies exhibiting at the fair.
South Africa has established a national pavilion at IDEF 2025, an effort coordinated by the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (the DTIC) through its Export Marketing and Investment Assistance (EMIA) Scheme. This initiative provides funding and support to develop exporters, promote South African products and services in international markets, and attract Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into the country. The decision to participate in this event aligns with South Africa’s broader export diversification strategy, which focuses on increasing the export of value-added products and services in critical industrial sectors to dynamic, high-growth global markets.
Willem van der Spuy, the Deputy Director-General of the Exports Branch at the DTIC, emphasised that IDEF 2025 offers South Africa a valuable opportunity to demonstrate its defence capabilities and establish strategic partnerships with key players in Turkey and other promising markets across Eurasia, the Middle East, and North Africa. To facilitate this, the DTIC has secured a 164-square-meter pavilion, where 13 South African companies from the defence, aviation, and related industries are showcasing their products and services. This presence allows South Africa to present its specialised and advanced technologies to a wider international audience while engaging with emerging trends shaping the global defence sector.
The South African exhibitors at IDEF 2025 include SVI, Imperial Armour, Fimm Tech, Unipro, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), QP Drone Tech, Redeployable Camp Systems SA, Swatek Defence and Aerospace, Armscor, Fuchs Electronics, Reutech, Etion Create, Bullet Proofing Technology, Dynateq International, and Reutech Communications. In addition, representatives from the Africa Aerospace and Defence (AAD) expo are attending IDEF 2025 to build support for their next event, scheduled for September 2026 in South Africa. The importance of IDEF as a global defence industry event is evident from its past performance.
The 2023 edition welcomed 94,000 visitors from 107 countries, along with 187 delegations and 1,460 exhibitors from nearly 55 countries. For 2025, the organisers are setting ambitious goals to surpass these numbers. Dr. Haluk Gorgun, Secretary of Turkish Defence Industries, expressed their aim to achieve record-breaking attendance, including more visitors, delegations, exhibitors, and signing ceremonies. He noted that the event will facilitate high-level meetings with officials from invited countries, providing a platform to review existing collaborations and explore new opportunities for mutual benefit. Turkey’s Minister of National Defence, Yasar Guler, added that in a world where defence and security challenges are increasingly complex, promoting and marketing high-tech defence products both domestically and internationally has become essential.
IDEF 2025 is expected to play a key role in this effort, showcasing technologies that have proven successful in the field and have been successfully exported to various countries. For South Africa, participation in IDEF 2025 demonstrates a clear commitment to expanding its footprint in the global defence market and strengthening ties with international partners. By presenting its capabilities and connecting with stakeholders, the country seeks to establish itself as a dependable and competitive supplier in the defence industry. This event also reflects the broader value of international defence fairs in fostering innovation, collaboration, and economic growth. Through the DTIC’s support and the efforts of its exhibitors, South Africa is taking meaningful steps toward achieving its export goals and enhancing its position on the world stage.