African Economic Forum at Columbia is a two-day conference that features keynote speakers, panels, networking sessions and concludes with a gala on Saturday evening - April 14th. (Photo: From AEF gallery)
Tadias Magazine
Events News
Published: Thursday, April 5, 2012
New York (TADIAS) – Columbia University’s 9th Annual African Economic Forum is scheduled to be held on April 13th-14th. The event highlights various topics facing Africa through a series of interactive discussions featuring business leaders and scholars from the continent and the Diaspora.
“This year our objective is to spotlight the growing trend of Africans revitalizing Africa,” organizers said in a press release. “Africans, for long, have been forced to accept the socio-economic ‘status quo’ as their future across their respective nations.” They added the continent “has been tied to foreign aid, decades-long incumbent rule in many countries, and dependent on natural resources to spur economic growth.”
The two-day conference – which brings together students, alumni, faculty and the business community – includes an evening gala, networking and panel discussions on subjects such as tourism, land reform, information revolution, peace & security, public health, sovereign wealth, and more. Among the guest speakers at the program are Mr. Lamido Sanusi, Co-Chair of the 2011 World Economic Forum. Mr. Sanusi, who is currently Nigeria’s Central Bank Governor, was noted in TIME Magazine’s 100 list in 2011 for his role in helping to transform his country’s banking industry at the height of the financial crisis in 2009.
“The tide is now turning, Africans have become more vocal, innovative and entrepreneurial,” the press release said. “We are now witnessing tremendous socio-economic improvement across many countries, and economic growth fueled by local enterprises. Moreover, Africans in the Diaspora are returning home in large numbers, and at a faster pace, to participate in this movement.”
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If You Go:
The 9th Annual African Economic Forum
April 13-14th, 2012
Columbia University’s Warren Hall.
Website & Registration: http://www.AEF2012.com
