Board of Investment will host the Africa Partnership Conference

Following the success of the Mauritius Africa Partnership in 2014, the Board of Investment will be hosting the Africa Partnership Conference 2016, in collaboration with the World Association of Investment Promotion Agencies (WAIPA) which will be held on the 20th and 21st September 2016.  

The theme of the conference is “Creating Shared Value through Sustainable Investment”. The conference will be officially launched by Pravind Kumar Jugnauth, Minister of Finance and Economic Development.

The African economy has undergone fundamental changes over the last decade. The rising investor’s interest in the African economy is driven by strong economic growth, rising foreign exchange reserves, quality and cost competitiveness and encouraging Government policy-making. The strong level of economic growth achieved in Africa in recent years has led to an expansion of industry, commerce, innovations and per capita income. This in turn has fuelled demand for infrastructural services including energy, transportation, air & maritime connectivity and urban infrastructure. In 2015, FDI flows to Africa was estimated at USD54 billion. However, the potential investment value is yet to be reached with an existing gap of USD 100 billion in infrastructural development sector alone.

The Africa Partnership Conference 2016 will hence provide a unique platform to address the infrastructural funding gap, which is a major constraint to optimising FDI flows in Africa. The three key areas of this year’s programme will address the:

• Attracting investment and private sector players to enhance the hard and soft infrastructure in Africa
• Creating shared value by improving investment climate in Africa through better collaboration
• Positioning Mauritius as the platform for boosting trade and investment into Africa

This two-day conference will bring together representatives of all African Investment Promotion Agencies, private sector promoters and investors from across the globe, policy makers and Government officials. The conference will see the participation of around 300 delegates. Eminent Speakers in attendance will include:

• Kanini Mutooni, Director, Investment and ICT USAID Contractor, East Africa Trade Investment Hub
• Désiré Vencatachellum, Director, Resource Mobilization and External Finance, African Development Bank
• Mamadou Toure, founder and Chairman of Africa 2.0
• Chad Larson, Co-founder and CFO of MKOPA

Investment Promotion Agencies from the following countries will be represented by their chief representatives:

• Nigeria- Katagum Ladi, Acting CEO, Nigeria Investment PromotionCommission (NIPC)
• Egypt- Mohamed Khodear, Chairman & CEO, General Authority for Investment & Free Zones GAFI
• Senegal- Mountaga SY, Administrateur Directeur Général, APIX
• Namibia- Artivor Bernadette, Executive Director, Namibia Investment Centre
• Burundi- Didace, Ngendakumana, Chief Executive Officer, Burundi Investment Promotion Agency (API)
• Swaziland- Dlamini Phumele, Chief Executive Officer, Swaziland Investment Promotion Agency (SIPA)