Devconia LLC, an international business development and cross-cultural risk management firm based in New York ( www.devconia.com ), convened a high-level roundtable today entitled "Effective Management of Africa's Extractive Industries." The conference focused on the role of ethics, regulations and multinational corporations (MNCs) in promoting equity and sustainable development in countries from which MNCs derive a significant portion of their income. The event was organized in collaboration with the Office of the Special Adviser to the President on Ethics & Values for the Federal Republic of Nigeria headed by Special Adviser Dr. Sarah Jibril, who was also the keynote speaker. Other collaborators included the National Minority Business Council and Brisk Research.

The roundtable was chaired and moderated by Mr. Kenneth Johnson, principal of Devconia LLC. Panelists included notables such as H.E. Mr. Jeremiah Nyamane Mamabolo, the South African Ambassador; Prof. Peter Eigen, Member of the Africa Progress Panel (APP), Founder and Chair of the Advisory Council, Transparency International and Founding Chair and Representative of the Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative; Mr. Natty B. Davis, Chair of the National Investment Commission of the Republic of Liberia; Mr. Brian Moriarty, Director of the Business Roundtable Institute for Corporate Ethics and Adjunct Professor at the University of Virginia's Darden School of Business; and Ms. Rosalind Kilkenny McLymont, of Africa Strictly Business. Participants included the Office of the Special Adviser on Africa, United Nations Secretariat, and representatives from the African Diplomatic Corps, as well as a cross section of the African Diaspora, international development practitioners, and leaders from the private sector.

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