Toronto, Canada -- On the occasion of the 2010 G20 Summit in Toronto, the leading private sector organizations of Africa and of countries investing on the African continent met in Toronto on June 23-24. The meeting’s goal was to identify further ways and the most effective means to stimulate private investment in Africa through better cooperation between the private sector, governments and aid agencies. To this effect, the group had extensive interactions during the meeting with President Jacob Zuma of South Africa and President Goodluck Jonathan of Nigeria, as well as a wide range of public and private sector leaders from Africa and elsewhere.
The group included the following organizations: the Canadian Council on Africa, the Corporate Council on Africa (U.S.), the European Business Council for Africa and the Mediterranean, the French Council of Investors in Africa-CIAN, Business Unity South Africa, the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry-FICCI, Komatsu Research & Advisory (Japan), the Nigerian Economic Summit Group and the Chamber of Commerce of Tenerife (Spain). Other organizations were also consulted in anticipation of the meeting. The group wishes to express its appreciation to the hosts of the meeting, the Canadian Council on Africa and the Corporate Council on Africa (U.S.) who took the initiative for organizing the meeting.
The group reaffirms its commitment to the need to abide by existing international agreements and to be respectful of the social and environmental requirements of Africa. With the G20 Summit focused on economic and financial recovery, the implementation of commitments from previous G20 Summits, and laying the foundation for sustainable and balanced growth, the group sought to bring to the attention of the leaders of the world economy past commitments made to Africa and the benefits of private sector promotion in the realization of these commitments. The private sector plays a key role in creating sustainable growth within Africa, and African growth in turn plays a key role in realizing balanced global growth.
G20 and African governments should target their efforts at improving the business environment by reducing trade barriers, upgrading transport and energy infrastructure, enhancing value chains, strengthening capital markets, and increasing local participation. Focusing policies and aid on these fronts, taking measures to stimulate foreign investment in Africa via financial incentives and risk mitigation, seeking public-private partnerships where appropriate, completing the WTO’s Doha Development Round negotiations at the earliest possible time, and increasing the effectiveness of multilateral institutions such as the World Bank and African Development Bank together represent the most direct and realistic path to strong, sustained economic growth in Africa. Going forward, the group will meet on a regular basis to follow up on the meetings held in Washington D.C., in September 2009 and in Toronto to measure progress.
About The Canadian Council on Africa
The Canadian Council on Africa is the only pan-Canadian organization dedicated to the economic development of Africa. With over 150 members active in every sector of the economy - including education, engineering, infrastructure, natural resources, energy, finance, legal, consulting, communications, information technology, manufacture, agri-food, environment, sustainable development and health - and with 4 offices located across Canada, CCAfrica is at the forefront of Canada's economic relationship with Africa. For more information, please visit: www.ccafrica.ca.
About The Corporate Council on Africa
Established in 1993, The Corporate Council on Africa is a nonpartisan 501 (c) (3) membership organization of nearly 180 U.S. companies dedicated to strengthening the commercial relationship between the U.S. and Africa. CCA members represent nearly 85 percent of total U.S. private sector investments in Africa. The organization is dedicated to bringing together potential business partners and to showcase business opportunities on the continent. For more information, please visit: www.africacncl.org.
CONTACT:
Rashida Petersen,(202) 256-6663, rpetersen@africacncl.org
Lucien Bradet, (613) 565- 3011, lucien.bradet@ccafrica.ca
