Africa: African Economic Conference Underway with Key Focus on Regional Integration

By NewsfromAfrica

JOHANNESBURG - The 8th edition of the African Economic Conference is being held in Johannesburg, South Africa,  from 28 to 30 October 2013. The meeting, under the theme "Regional Integration in Africa", is jointly organized by The African Development Bank (ADB), the UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) and the United Nations Program for Development (UNDP).

This year, the African Economic Conference will bring together senior political and business leaders, heads of state, leading researchers and development experts from across the African continent and the rest of the world. They will discuss the efforts of African countries to join forces and integrate their economies with a view to develop both national and regional levels.

Participants will also discuss efforts in different fields and sectors, including finance, road transport, power pools, management of water resources, taxation and labor mobility. Other topics of discussion, specific issues related to middle-income countries and those of fragile states.

The 2013 African Economic Conference will also discuss the constraints faced by effective regional integration: a regional network infrastructure underdeveloped, particularly in transport, energy and communications, and legal, institutional and regulatory inappropriate. Finally, participants will try to find solutions that facilitate regional integration of African countries.

The meeting will be a unique space for academic exchanges and recognized the new skills of the continent, which may explain, in detail, their research on development policies.

The official opening ceremony will be chaired by South African President Jacob Zuma, in the presence of Helen Clark, UNDP Administrator, Donald Kaberuka, President of the ADB, and Abdalla Hamdok, Deputy Executive Secretary of ECA.