Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete, who will host the meeting, said "Africa is a continent full of potential. Africa has been growing despite the economic instability that is facing the world today. We will have the opportunity to examine the strategy of Africa for today to ensure that there is a better tomorrow."
For her part, Katherine Tweedie, Director, Head of Africa, World Economic Forum, said that it is fitting to celebrate this milestone year by hosting the Africa meeting for the first time in East Africa at this pivotal point as Africa and the rest of the world seek answers to the economic crisis, which will bring together leaders under the theme "Rethinking Africa’s Growth Strategy" to find real solutions.
The economic crisis has acted as a wake-up call to speed up implementation of long-discussed reforms. Emerging markets, including those in Africa, are among the first to show signs of a recovery and are forecast to increasingly contribute to global growth in the next decade. The meeting will provide leaders with a platform for how they are facing up to the challenge and using the crisis as an opportunity to redesign a sustainable roadmap for Africa’s future.
This is the first time for the World Economic Forum on Africa to be held in an African country out of South Africa in the past 20 years as the African Development Bank (AfDB) has recently projected that eastern African countries will witness the highest average growth as all African countries are expected to experience higher growth in 2010 than in 2009, spurred by the strong demand from global markets for African oil, minerals and agriculture products.
As the second largest economy in East Africa, Tanzania is expected to experience the biggest economy expansion in East Africa this year with 5.7 percent, while Uganda and Rwanda to expand by 5.1 percent and 4.8 percent respectively, and Kenya, the regional largest economy, is expected to grow by 4.3 percent and Burundi’s economy will accelerate by 3.2 percent, according to the AfDB estimates.
Source: Allafrica