Under the auspices of the President of the Republic of Ghana, His Excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, and His Excellency Wamkele Mene, secretary general of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat, the maiden edition of the Africa Prosperity Dialogues series will hold from Thursday 26 to Saturday 28 January 2023 in Ghana, host nation of the AfCFTA Secretariat.
An initiative of the Africa Prosperity Network (APN), the dialogue series are expected to bring Africa’s political and business leaders together in conference with other thought leaders on Africa. Not only will they brainstorm on the all-important single-market project for the continent, but the dialogues will also create an annual platform for the continent’s leaders to spearhead collaborative implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement.
The launch of the Africa Prosperity Dialogues is in recognition of how, for the trade agreement to work, there must be shared ownership of the AfCFTA’s objectives, particularly by businesses, whether big or small, right from the onset.
In recent times, global geopolitical turmoil has exposed Africa’s overreliance on the global supply chain and on exports of natural resources. It has also highlighted how important it is for Africa seriously to strengthen the capacity for greater intra-African reliance and cushion herself against exogenous shocks of events beyond her control.
The Africa Prosperity Dialogues will incorporate the launch of various platforms for political and business leaders on the continent and in the diaspora to think, plan and collaborate towards building the world’s largest single market of Africa’s 1.4 billion people. This will help to create more opportunities for African citizens and build a more prosperous Africa.
Dubbed the “Kwahu Summit” because the concept was developed at the Rock City Hotel in the Kwahu Mountains of eastern Ghana, the dialogue series will also help bring into sharp focus the continent’s critical challenges, outline its industrialisation priorities, and aggressively advance the commercial and infrastructural interventions required to achieve the goal of deepening intercontinental trade.
The dialogues will take place in two parts. The first will feature the Business and Policy Leaders’ Dialogue – a retreat for business executives and associations, senior public figures, thought leaders, technocrats and the Association of Africa Investment Promotion Agencies.
This event will take place on 26 and 27 January at the idyllic Safari Valley Resort in Aburi on the mountainous Akuapem Ridge.
The second part of the dialogues will be hosted by President Akufo-Addo and will take place on Saturday 28 January 2023. President Akufo-Addo will be joined by a number of colleague heads of state from across the eight regional blocs on the African continent.
Among the leaders invited are the presidents of Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Niger, Nigeria, the Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Senegal and South Africa.
Accomplished entrepreneurs, industrialists, economists, bankers and other business leaders in Africa and beyond have also confirmed their participation.