Aurore Bonny
05 June 2023•Update: 05 June 2023
DOUALA, Cameroon
The Africa CEO forum, an annual two-day meeting of the African private sector, opened on Monday in Abidjan, Ivory Coast.
The forum "has officially begun. It's time to realize our ambitions and build a prosperous future for Africa together," said Makhtar Diop, managing director of the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector arm of the World Bank and co-organizer of the event.
According to Diop, the aim of the event is to support the small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) sector, which creates jobs and attracts many investors in African countries.
"It's about supporting startups, which is where young people invest and work. But it's also about investing in sectors such as agriculture, and taking advantage of the opportunities offered by the African Free Trade Area (AFCFTA) to better integrate African economies, so that the continent can be a major player in the new economy linked to climate change," he said.
Co-organized with Jeune Afrique Media Group, the forum will cover topics such as energy transition management adapted to Africa, the impact of mining and agro-industry, the need for Africa to make its voice heard on major international issues, and the means available to businesses to adapt in the face of inflation.
Leaders and senior executives from Africa's biggest companies, as well as representatives of international investors and financial backers, came together to reflect on how to accelerate the emergence of the next generation of African champions.
The organizers said that the 300 champions need to be increased to 3,000 to truly transform the continent.
To identify, develop and promote them, "we need states capable of rethinking certain economic models. We need proactive, strategic and innovative states. This is the sine qua non for prioritizing innovation. We must pursue our strategies and apply our programs to promote the private sector," said Patrick Achi, prime minister of Ivory Coast.
Africa is still brimming with economic potential whose opportunities are largely untapped in all sectors, he said.
"We need to help our future champions integrate into the global value chain. Involving our private sector in the transformation of our economies is possible. Africa has an increasing number of enlightened leaders. Our countries are reforming, acting and moving forward. They need investors who want to act as much as they do and move forward as much as they do," Achi added.
For Moroccan Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch, economic and regional integration is "a must for Africa."
"Intratrade will boost growth through complementarity between countries. Non-tariff barriers must be removed to accelerate the integration of the African continent," he said.
