Washington, D.C. — Health Industry Experts to Join Other Global Leaders from Leading U.S. and African Companies and Government Agencies for First U.S.-Africa Business Summit in Africa
The Corporate Council (CCA) on Africa today announced confirmed public and private health experts who will speak on the impact of health on business November 14 – 16 at the Cape Town International Convention Centre in Cape Town, South Africa during the CCA's 2007 U.S.-Africa Business Summit. Poor health, particularly conditions associated with HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis (TB) and malaria, are having a significant impact on business and economic growth in Africa and increasingly affect investment and trade between the United States and Africa.
Interested participants can pre-register at www.africacncl.org through November 7th.
This year's Summit – the first to take place in Africa – will include a plenary session focused on ways that the public and private sectors can work together to ensure a healthier future for Africa. The Summit also will include four workshops on health and economic topics.
Health industry experts will cover a range of topics including the future impact of health on business; the role and power of public-private partnerships in addressing global public health issues; the ongoing development of codes and standards for ethical business practices; and how companies are leveraging their skills and expertise to address health challenges. Panelists will share innovative models of public-private partnerships, best practices in mitigating the impact of disease on business in Africa, and lessons learned in creating and sustaining multi-sector partnerships.
Confirmed speakers to participate in health-focused sessions include Alex Cummings, President of Coca-Cola Africa; Dr. Jeff Sturchio, Vice President of Corporate Responsibility of Merck & Co., Inc.; Ebenezer Omatsola Kpiasi, Medical Director of Chevron Nigeria and Mid-Africa; Ibiba Chidi, Director of IBANI-SE Partnership; Sydney Rosen, Assistant Professor at Boston University's Center for International Health; Donald DeKorte, Director of HIV/AIDS Access Programs, MSD; Peter Mehlape, Business Manager of BD Diagnostics Africa and General Manager of BD Johannesburg; Bill Souders, IT Director of Global E-LEARNING Technologies of CISCO Systems Inc.; Brad Mears, CEO of The South Africa Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS; Bill Lay, General Manager of General Motors East Africa; Cal Bruns, CEO of MatchBoxology; Richard Kasesela, CEO of Business Coalition of Tanzania; Robin Gorna, Team Leader of Global AIDS Policy, DFID; Victor Barnes, Director of The Corporate Council on Africa HIV/AIDS Initiative; Willem A. Landman, CEO of Ethics Institute of South Africa; and Solomon Benatar, Professor of Medicine and Bioethics at the University of Cape Town.
"The private sector is an important financial resource in the fight against HIV/AIDS, TB and Malaria, but it is equally important as a critical partner in co-investment and in-kind contributions of expertise and essential goods and services," said CCA President Stephen Hayes . "The health track panelists' wealth of knowledge of the corporate worlds will help provide informative and progressive insights and perspectives to this much-needed dialogue."
Hosted every two years, this is CCA's sixth Summit, but the first-ever to be held in Africa. More than 1,300 participants are expected to attend.
Appropriately titled "Africa: Entering the Door to Opportunities," the Summit will provide a forum for some of the world's top global business leaders to discuss trade and investment opportunities in Africa, best practices, and how best to increase trade and investment in ways that will help engender sustainable growth on the continent.
The U.S.-Africa Business Summit will include sector-specific plenary sessions, workshops, business networking opportunities, and a two-day trade expo where businesses will showcase their products, services, and capabilities to potential buyers and customers throughout Africa. Sessions will focus on key sectors including infrastructure development, mining, agribusiness, telecommunications, energy, transportation, and sports and tourism among numerous others.
The 2007 Summit will feature business trade missions led by a diverse pool of U.S. organizations to several African nations. In an unprecedented offering, Summit delegates will have an opportunity to explore business prospects in an additional African country immediately following the Summit in Cape Town.
To date, corporations including Chevron, Merck & Co., Inc., ExxonMobil, Marathon Oil, The Boeing Company, 3M, Cargill, General Motors, Chrysler, Hewlett-Packard-SA, Coca-Cola Africa, Johnson & Johnson, Development Bank of Southern Africa, and Lazare Kaplan International, JR Boulle, Oracle South Africa, U.S. Agency for International Development, South African Airways, Ethiopian Airlines, HRDI, Merck, Hess Corporation, African Wildlife Foundation, Buchanan Renewable Energies, African Development Bank, Carana Corporation, Government of Mauritius, Baker Hostetler, OPIC, Commercial Services, Westinghouse; as well as media outlets including Reuters Africa, All Africa Global Media, New African, African Business, Corporate Africa, and Institutional Investor, have come together as sponsors of the upcoming Summit.
CCA's U.S.-Africa Business Summits have a stellar track record of attendees and high-powered workshop and plenary sessions. Former World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz, former U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell, President George W. Bush, South Africa President Thabo Mbeki, and many other African Heads of State have participated in past Summits.
To find out more about the upcoming Summit, visit www.africacncl.org.
CCA, established in 1993, is a nonpartisan 501 (c) (3) membership organization of nearly 200 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.
