Shaping of inclusive growth in 4IR set to take centre at World Economic Forum

“The meeting will be the first that the World Economic Forum has held in sub-Saharan Africa since 2017 when leaders from government, business, and civil society from around the world gathered in Durban, South Africa,” said the WEF.

The shaping of inclusive growth and shared futures in the Fourth Industrial Revolution is set to take centre stage when the 28th World Economic Forum on Africa takes place in Cape Town next month.

In a media advisory, the WEF said the forum would take place from 4 to 6 September.

"The meeting will be the first that the World Economic Forum has held in sub-Saharan Africa since 2017 when leaders from government, business, and civil society from around the world gathered in Durban, South Africa," said the WEF.

This year's meeting falls in a year when 20 elections will take place across the region, and nearly 100 days since South African President Cyril Ramaphosa took office.

Data from the World Bank indicates that, while progress has been made politically in sub-Saharan Africa, economic growth is also expected to accelerate modestly in 2019 from 3.1% in 2018 to an average of 3.6% in 2019, according to the World Bank.

Against this backdrop, the World Economic Forum on Africa will address a number of key issues facing the region's inclusive development. These include:

Supporting growth and integration through the African Continental Free Trade Area.

Creating high-quality employment opportunities and protecting workers in the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

Employing drones to address health, infrastructure and other societal needs.

Using emerging technologies to advance healthcare and prepare for epidemics.

Implementing growth strategies that address environmental challenges and deliver industrialization.

The Co-Chairs of the meeting are:

Ellen Agler, Chief Executive Officer, The END Fund, USA.

Jeremy Farrar, Director, Wellcome Trust, United Kingdom.

Arancha Gonzalez Laya, Executive Director, International Trade Centre (ITC), Geneva

André Hoffmann, Vice-Chairman, Roche, Switzerland.

Alex Liu, Managing Partner, and Chairman, A.T. Kearney, USA.

Jim Ovia, Chairman, Zenith Bank, Nigeria.

Sipho M Pityana, Chairman, Anglo

Gold Ashanti, South Africa.

"Africa's successful development depends on building the right conditions for its new generation of entrepreneurs, innovators, and leaders.

"This means smart, agile institutions; an enabling environment for innovation that includes access to skills and capital; and a determined approach by policy-makers to level the playing field and implement policies that prioritize sustainable, inclusive growth over short-term imperatives," said Elsie Kanza, Head of the Regional Agenda, Africa, and Member of the Executive Committee at the World Economic Forum.

(With Inputs from South African Government Press Release)