Washington, DC — The Africa Society of the National Summit on Africa and the World Affairs Council – Washington, DC, will host 600 students for a Youth Forum entitled "Africa: A Continent for the 21st Century" from 8:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., on November 17, 2014 at the Ronald Reagan International Trade Center in Washington, D.C.
In addition to learning about foreign policy as it pertains to Africa and the media, students from the Washington metropolitan area will learn about and discuss the issues of Energy, Peace and Security, Trade and Investment, Energy, Food Security and Agriculture, Health and Technology. Workshops will be convened for teachers and students by policymakers and leading experts in their respective fields.
Linda Thomas-Greenfield, Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, will deliver the keynote address. Other Opening Plenary speakers include Heidi Shoup, President of the World Affairs Council-DC; Bernadette Paolo, President and CEO of The Africa Society; Her Excellency Faida Mitifu, Ambassador to the U.S. from the Democratic Republic of the Congo; Tami Hultman, Co-Founder of AllAfrica.com; and Kenyan poet, Ana Mwalagho.
Featured presenters convening workshops include Florizelle Liser, Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Africa; Dr. Raymond Gilpin, Dean, Africa Center for Strategic Studies; Dr. Monde Muyangwa, Director, Africa Program, Wilson Center; Dr. Chinua Akukwe, Academy Fellow and Chair, Africa Working Group, National Academy of Public Administration; Joshua Sneidman, Office of Strategic Programs, Department of Energy; Dennis Matanda, Manchester Trade; Adi Raval, Power Africa and Trade Africa, USAID; Paul Ofori, Director of Programs, Edusei Foundation; Barbara Edwall, Senior Liaison Officer, Food and Agricultural Organization of the UN; Faustine Wabwire, Senior Foreign Assistance Policy Analyst, Bread for the World.
This Forum marks the second collaboration by The Africa Society and the World Affairs Council-DC geared toward fostering Africa education in the United States. In May, these organizations partnered with the Department of State in bringing together 200 students and teachers in advance of the U.S. Summit for African Heads of State and Government. Students had an opportunity to interact with their peers in South Africa, Ghana and the Democratic Republic of the Congo via satellite in determining recommendations on the same themes to be addressed by their respective leaders.
The mission of The Africa Society is to be the premier entity that engages and educates Americans about the countries comprising the continent of Africa and to create, through partnerships, a better understanding of its peoples, diverse cultures, histories and economies. An outgrowth of the historic National Summit on Africa, The Africa Society implements a range of educational programs for people of all ages with a number of partners and leading institutions. Teach Africa, The Africa Society's flagship program, is intended to create goodwill ambassadors for the United States through the provision of knowledge so as to strengthen future U.S.-Africa relations. The program has reached 10,000 students and trained more than 3,100 administrators and educators.
Since 1980, the World Affairs Council-Washington, D.C. has provided thought-provoking, top level presentations, debates and discussions of global education and international affairs in the Washington metropolitan area. Council's global education programs offer students, teachers, educators and adults opportunities to engage with global leaders and foreign policy experts to expand their understanding of critical issues facing our increasingly interconnected world. These programs, including the teacher development workshops, and youth leadership forums, foster a balanced view of global issues and prepare our youth to compete in the 21st century workplace.
Contributions toward this program have been provided by the Edusei Foundation and Chevron.
