K.T. Hammond addressing the gathering
A host of institution heads, captains of industry, government officials and members of the international community last Thursday converged in Accra ahead of the second edition of the Africa Prosperity Dialogues (APD 2024) which is scheduled for January 25 to 27, 2024.
Organisers of the event, Africa Prosperity Network (APN), hosted the partners and stakeholders’ cocktail barely two months before the main event to bring the partners up to speed on preparations and direction of the three-day event.
The Africa Prosperity Dialogues is designed to offer a strategic and trusted annual platform to drive intra-African trade.
It is a platform where the highest political and business decision makers in Africa, discourse and come out with clear, actionable initiatives to enhance trade and prosperity in Africa, aligned with the Africa Union’s s Agenda 2063.
This year’s dialogue will be hosted by President Akufo-Addo under the theme ‘Delivering Prosperity in Africa: Produce, Add Value, Trade,’ and will be held at the Peduase Lodge, Aburi Hills in the Eastern Region.
Minister for Trade and Industry, K.T. Hammond, who was the special guest for the occasion, indicated that the trade ministry, standing as the fulcrum for driving trade, industry, and private sector development, is aligned with the broader objectives of the APD 2024.
He said a thriving production sector, through value addition, is the bedrock of economic prosperity and that is why the second edition of the Africa Prosperity Dialogues is an event he looks forward to in January 2024.
“I’m elated that this platform unites us in a shared vision to unlock Africa’s immense potential by fostering robust partnerships and collaborations. It’s through such collaborations that we can propel the AfCFTA agenda, enabling inclusive growth, job creation, and shared prosperity for all Africans,” Mr. Hammond said.
“Together, let us persist in our efforts, united in our resolve to chart a course toward an Africa brimming with prosperity and boundless opportunities for all,” he added.
Executive Chairman of the Africa Prosperity Network, Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko, observed that APD2 will see heads of businesses on the African continent come together, think together, plan together, and work together with the political leadership of the continent on how to make the single market trade a reality.
“We are not just going to have conversations, we will see deliverables from there [the APD] and whatever comes out of the dialogues, there will be a compact that will be presented to the AU for their consideration,” Mr. Otchere-Darko added.
Chief Staff at the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat, Silver Ojakol, described the AfCFTA secretariat’s partnership with APD as a strategic development that will go a long way to influence the ability of the AfCFTA to deliver the much-needed prosperity the Africa continent so desperately needs.
“The AfCFTA secretariat is very much committed to ensuring that this process (the Africa Prosperity Dialogues), moves forward and delivers prosperity for the continent,” Mr. Ojakol assured.
Charles Abani, the United Nations (UN) resident coordinator in Ghana, on his part said initiatives such as the Africa Prosperity Dialogues, which is aimed at rallying the private sector to lead the efforts of the continent to raise the requisite finances for the development of the continent and for the establishment a strong intra-continental trade portfolio through the AfCFTA, are critical and powerful tools in achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
BY Gibril Abdul Razak