Panafrican News Agency

8th edition of AFRICA CEO FORUM opens in Côte d'Ivoire

Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso (PANA) - The 8th edition of the AFRICA CEO FORUM opened on Monday in Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire, with Presidents Alassane Ouattara of Côte d'Ivoire, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo of Ghana, and several heads of government, business leaders, and businessmen from Africa in attendance, the Ivorian government announced in a statement.

It said the forum, under the theme "Sovereignty, Green Growth and Industrial Transformation: New Roads to African Prosperity", will focus on proposing new roads for African growth.

Host President Ouattara welcomed the return to Abidjan of this major meeting of the African private sector, according to an official statement.

The Ivorian Head of State urged participants to exchange views on the challenges facing African countries, especially due to the Covid 19 pandemic and the crisis in Ukraine.

He maintained that the impacts of these crises are perceptible throughout the world with general inflation, the rise in the cost of oil and certain agricultural commodities.

"Africa remains one of the most promising economic zones in the world. It has all the prerequisites for accelerated growth: 60% of arable land, abundant mineral and energy resources, a dynamic youth, etc. But the challenges remain immense," the statement said.

For the Managing Director of the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Makhtar Diop, the Forum is a unique opportunity for public authorities and the private sector to discuss the structural transformation of the economy through industrialisation, the development of skills in information technology, science, technology, artificial intelligence, etc.

"Whether it is a question of sustainable growth, job creation or accompanying the development of national and regional champions, the AFRICA CEO FORUM intends to work on the public-private dialogue that is more important than ever to shape a sovereign and autonomous Africa.

"In particular, the development of an African private sector, the engine of sustainable and inclusive economic growth, the acceleration of intra-African trade, amounting to date around 16%, the strengthening of the commercial position of the continent on the global market to achieve a volume of inter-African trade of 60% by 2034," Makhtar Diop said, welcoming the establishment of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

He hoped that it would promote the development of national and regional champions.

Launched in 2012, at the initiative of Jeune Afrique Media Group and the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the Africa CEO Forum is now a key event for business leaders, investors, start-ups and policy makers to seize investment and economic development opportunities on the continent.

Some 1,500 business leaders, investors and policy makers from Africa and around the world are taking part in the event.

The two days of high-level conferences, debates and meetings will be dedicated to highlighting the driving role of the private sector in the development of the continent.

-0- PANA TNDD/IS/BBA/VAO 13June2022