Fourth African Economists Congress underway in Ghana

The Fourth African Economists Congress, titled “Industrial Policy and Economic Performance in Africa,” is underway this week in Accra, Ghana.

The conference was organized by the Department of Economic Affairs of the African Union Commission (AUC) in partnership with the African Capacity Building Foundation (ACBF). Goals for the session include intensifying efforts toward sustainable development and creating more dialogue among researchers and African economic policy makers about industrial development policies in Africa.

Other topics on the agenda include skill retention, promoting information management, and policy planning and implementation.

Attendees included researchers, economists and officials from AUC member states.

"Industrialization is a fundamental part of the African strategy toward inclusive growth and economic transformation for the next decade and beyond," AUC said in a statement. "Indeed, at a time when countries of the continent are in search of new sources of economic growth to consolidate the gains of the last decade and move toward inclusive growth and sustainable development, attention to industrialization is more important than ever."

The prior three African Economists Congresses took place in Nairobi, Kenya, in 2009; Abidjan, Ivory Coast, in 2011; and Dakar, Senegal in 2013.