Stanchart 2015 Africa summit slated for April 30

Standard Chartered would on April 30 host its 2015 Africa summit in Accra on the theme: “The last frontier; is Africa ready for transformation?”.

The exclusive half-day event is expected to bring together clients of the Bank, business leaders, policy makers, the media and Standard Chartered’s Award Winning Global Research Team to share valuable market insights and expert opinion on the selected discussion points.

A statement signed by Nii Okai Nunoo, the Regional Head of Corporate Affairs, West Africa and copied to the Ghana News Agency in Accra on Tuesday said the event would dive into two main topics namely, “translating Africa’s growth potential into equitable development and human security’ and “Africa Rising: Was it an apparent inflection or mere ripple.

Vice President, Kwesi Amissah-Arthur is expected to deliver a keynote address, while Mr Seth Terkper, Minister of Finance, Dr Mohammed Ibn Chambas, Special Representative of the UN Secretary General for West Africa and Ms Sun Boaohong, Chinese Ambassador to Ghana and other business leaders would form part of the panelist.

The Africa Summit was introduced three years ago to create a platform for the bank to share with the rest of the industry and policy makers in particular the findings of its research on various sectors of the economy.

It further seeks to create a platform for management of the bank to network with clients while exchanging ideas on topical issues in the business community in Africa.

It said these highly relevant discussions would be moderated by international journalist and Chair of the Royal African Society, Zeinab Badawi.

According to the statement, Mr Kweku Bedu-Addo, Chief Executive, Standard Chartered, said “Ghana and, for that matter, Africa has remained on the economic runway for far too long”.

He said the potential remains obvious however there are some hurdles the African continent needs to overcome.

He said the Bank believes that Africa still makes a strong case for investment but may require some fine-tuning and further refinement.

Mr Razia Khan, Head of Research Standard Chartered Africa, said “Despite the slowdown in growth in Africa, this year the long-term structural drivers of growth are still very much in place”.

He said Africa has the youngest population of any region and more importantly however, its share of the working age population was set to rise sharply in the decades ahead.

“Together with financial deepening, this will drive the emergence of a larger middle class, and consumption will gain in importance. Africa is also becoming more accessible to investment – building on its relationship with existing trade partners and deepening ties with new partners from the emerging world,” he added.

GNA