Appearing unperturbed, Emmerson Mnangagwa flew into Cape Town, South Africa yesterday to attend the World Economic Forum amid rumours that some African countries are boycotting the event due to massive Xenophobic violence in the host country.
Rwanda, DRC and Malawi were last night indicated in media reports to be sceptical about sending representatives to the forum in protest against the killing of their citizens by South Africans.
The World Economic Forum (WEF) on Africa is being launched in that country’s coastal city on Wednesday and participating nations are to deliberate on issues that should shape the continent’s future in terms of sustainable development, innovation, digitisation and governance.
The meeting was expected to see the convergence of at least 1 000 regional and global leaders in politics, business, civic society, media and the academia before the xenophobia issues gave a dent to it.
By the end of day yesterday, it was only his opponent Nelson Chamisa who had issued a statement on the plight of the country’s citizens. As the day stretched into the night, there was not a word from Mnangagwa, with Chamisa tweeting-
Under the theme: “Shaping Inclusive Growth and Shared Future in the Fourth Industrial Revolution”, the meeting comes at a time when the continent is seeking solutions to overcome challenges such as economic inequality, rising unemployment and a growing youth population demanding a fair share of the cake.
Statistics show that by 2025 half of the continent’s population will comprise the youth, hence the need to take serious consideration of this demographic in its development discourse.
Women also need to be given space as key partners in development.
The meeting is expected to launch an Africa growth programme to facilitate enterprise development through securing effective funding from investors and institutions. Funding constraints have affected business growth in most economies on the continent.
WEF Africa 2019 will also explore new models to help the continent achieve success at a time when technology is creating economic and societal shifts.
Other areas of focus here include skills and education, ocean economy, free trade and commerce, and the effects of the drone technology on economies. – Agencies/State Media