The 10th edition of the CII EXIM Bank Conclave on India Africa, to be held between 9-11 March in New Delhi, will give an insight into the IT and telecom industry in the African continent
According to Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), the conclave will promote strong industrial relationships between the two regions and boost economic opportunities.
India has been the preferred educational destination for the African students for a long time. The Government of India’s Indian technical and economic cooperation (ITEC) programme has helped many youth from the continent to pursue professional and higher education in India. The Pan African eNetwork (PAN) project also underscores India’s key contribution to Africa’s information and communications technology (ICT) and education needs, CII said.
The African Union (AU) and India have already signed an MoU by which India will establish 14 capacity building institutions in different AU member states.
The parallel session ‘Capacity Building – Collaborating in Skilling & Scaling’ on Day 3 of the CII EXIM Bank Conclave on India Africa aims to address queries regarding the critical areas in Africa where Indian expertise is most needed and whether and how India is contributing enough to Africa’s capacity building in different sectors.
The keynote speakers include Albert Damantang Camara, Republic of Guinea’s minister of technical education, vocational training, employment and work; Dilip Chenoy, managing director and CEO of National Skill Development Corporation and Sushma Berlia, president, Apeejay Stya & Svran Group
Over the last nine years, heads of states from African countries like Ghana, Cameroon, Mauritius, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Liberia, among others have participated in conclave.
The CII has also organised 13 regional conclaves in Zambia, Ethiopia, Ghana, Mozambique, South Africa, Uganda, Senegal, Côte d’Ivoire, Tanzania, Namibia and Nigeria.
The upcoming conclave in New Delhi is expected to encourage Indian exporters to access African nations with ease by signing MoUs and discuss a range of developmental projects. So far, projects worth nearly US$172.25bn have been discussed in the past nine editions of the conclave.
According to CII, the conclave has emerged as one of the largest congregation of senior ministers, policy makers and businessmen from both regions.
The CII has also explored broader financial opportunities for Indian companies by discussing credit facilities with African financial institutions to support business endeavours.
For the 2014 edition, the theme will be ‘Accelerating Economic Growth through Innovation, Transformation, Inclusion and Governance’. Through this, CII plans to prioritise on improving India’s growth trajectory, while retaining focus on accountability and transparency in the corporate eco-system.
At the upcoming conclave, Lesotho will be the partner country and DRCongo is the focus country. The Lesotho delegation will be led by the Prime Minister Motsoahae Thomas Thabanethe, and DRCongo delegation will be led by led by Chief Minister-in-charge of Industry Isidore Mvouba.
Moreover, delegates from more than 43 African countries have confirmed their participation.
