Big names for Transform Africa Summit in VicFalls
President Mnangagwa is set to host three heads of State, a deputy prime minister and
scores of executives of leading financial institutions in Africa who will join over 3 000
delegates from over 100 countries at the Transform Africa Summit (TAS) in Victoria Falls
next week.
The Summit is Africa’s leading annual forum bringing together global and regional
leaders from Government, business and international organisations to collaborate on
new ways of shaping, accelerating and sustaining Africa’s on-going digital revolution.
According to the organisers, Zimbabwe has been selected to host the three-day highlevel event against bids from other 36 members of the Smart Africa Alliance.
Zimbabwe won the bid because it is an active member that is leading the continental
Agri-Tech blueprint.
TAS, which is in its 6th edition, is set for April 26 to 28 and runs under the theme:
“Connect, Innovate, and Transform.”
The previous five editions were all held in Rwanda.
Close to 3 000 delegates from over 100 countries are expected to attend the summit
whose focus is on digital transformation of the African continent.
Smart Africa is taking care of the budget and resource mobilisation, which is estimated at
US$1,2 million.
According to the official programme on TAS website, President Mnangagwa will be joined
by Rwandan counterpart, President Paul Kagame, who is the chairman of the Smart
Africa Board.
Malawi and Senegal Presidents, Lazarus Chakwera and Macky Sall respectively, are also
billed to grace the summit.
Serbia Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, Mr Siniša Mali, Estonia’s Deputy
Minister for Economic and Development, Ms Mariin Ratnik and the President and
Chairman of the Board of Directors of the African Export-Import Bank, Dr Benedict Okey
Oramah are some of the high profile figures that will attend.
The list of key speakers also include Malawi Information Minister Mr Moses
Kalongashawa Kunkuy, Senegal Minister of Communication, Telecommunications and
Digital Economy Mr Moussa Bocar Thiam, chief executive officer of Pan-African
Payment Settlement System(PAPSS) Mr Mike Ogbalu III, Secretary General of the African
Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA Secretariat Wamkele Mene and Dr Oramah.
Speaking from Victoria Falls yesterday, Information Communication and Technology
(ICT), Postal and Courier Services Deputy Minister Dingumuzi Phuti said preparatory
works are at an advanced stage.
He said hosting the summit speaks to the success of the Second Republic’s reengagement and engagement policy.
“Bidding and winning the rights to host such a strategic conference is an affirmation
that President Mnangagwa’s re-engagement and engagement drive is gaining traction.
Zimbabwe is bouncing back into the community of nations.”
Deputy Minister Phuti is leading a delegation that is overseeing the preparations for the
summit.
He said from the number of people that have registered to date, the conference will be
oversubscribed.
“The amount of preparatory work and delegates who have registered so far point to a
successful conference. The European Union is sending a delegation of 30 people,
Germany 100 delegates and Estonia is sending 20 people.
“In terms of spin-offs, the tourism sector is immensely benefiting as we have people
who have been in Victoria Falls for over a month preparing for the summit. Some have
indicated that they will stay a week longer after the summit,” said Deputy Minister Phuti.
He said as information technology is driving the global economy, the summit has
attracted big ICT players who might want to set up shop in the country and Zimbabwe
stands to benefit from skills transfer.
Organisers of the summit said Zimbabwe was selected to host the summit because it
showed commitment to the accomplishment of Smart Africa’s objectives and also has the
required facilities to host such a big conference.
“Any member of the Smart Africa Alliance that meets the requirements can host the
summit. Zimbabwe is an active member which is leading the continental Agri-Tech
blueprint hence it won the bid this year,” said the organisers in a statement.
Organisers said the Transform Africa Summit has made a name for itself as a leading
technology forum in Africa and has attracted numerous global and regional leaders from
government, business and international organisations.
The inaugural summit held in Kigali in 2013 brought together seven heads of State,
making it the most attended.
On the significance of the summit, the organisers said: “The Transform Africa Summit is
an opportunity for meaningful engagements on how governments can attract large-scale
investments and enable fast growth and exports as well as for the private sector to thrive
in an innovation and ICT-driven entrepreneurship ecosystem thereby transforming
African nations into smart societies.”
Zimbabwe is set to fully exploit the high-level summit by showcasing its investment
opportunities in order to attract new investments.
Last week, Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister Monica
Mutsvangwa said preparations are firmly on course and weekly preparatory meetings are
being held.
She said an Inter-Ministerial Organising Committee is working closely with the Smart
Africa Secretariat in preparing for the Summit.
Topics to be tackled range from Building Resilient Digital Ecosystem in Africa through
Sustainable Investment, Innovative Financing for the Single Digital Market and Foreign
Investment for Digital Ecosystem of Africa, Co-operation and Best practices. – The Chronicle
