Several actors of the economic and political world of Africa met on Monday 13 June 2022 at the Sofitel Hotel Ivoire in Abidjan, for the Africa CEO Forum 2022. This meeting of more than 1,500 participants allowed decision-makers to discuss the economic sovereignty of the continent.
Hundreds of top African and international business leaders as well as heads of state and government took part in the 2022 edition of the Africa CEO Forum.
Meeting again after missed editions due to COVID
Indeed, this forum comes at a time when the world in general and Africa in particular are going through major economic and health crises. This is clarified by Frédéric Maury, Editorial Director at Jeune Afrique and organiser of the meeting: “The last edition of the Africa CEO Forum took place in 2019 in Kigali with great success, we had 1500 participants at the time who gathered around the theme of the ZLECA. Unfortunately, in 2020, it had to be cancelled a few days before the event in Abidjan because of the COVID pandemic.
So for us,” he continues, “it’s the big return of the annual physical edition, we’ve been doing a lot of digital for two years so we haven’t disappeared, but in fact, it’s the annual physical edition that’s coming back this year, so there’s a very important stake for us.
The organiser is delighted with the massive participation of over 75 countries. This justifies the importance and credit that governments give to the Africa CEO Forum. “What really surprised us and made us happy was that the membership was massive, since we had 1,800 participants in this edition, which is more than before Covid-19. So people are coming back, we feel that people wanted to meet again, to network. We have participants from more than 75 countries who sometimes only see each other once a year at the Africa CEO Forum and who have not seen each other for three years, so it’s a real pride and pleasure to see everyone again after these difficult years,” explains Frédéric Maury, editorial director of Jeune Afrique Media Group.
The initiative is welcomed
Alassane Ouattara, President of the Republic of Ivory Coast, in his opening speech praised the resilience of African economies despite the economic situation the world is experiencing. Similarly, the participating companies did not fail to express their satisfaction with the forum. For them, it is a real platform for exchange and reflection to find solutions for Africa’s growth. “We are delighted to partner with the advocacy firm for the Women Working for Change section, which is close to my heart as a person and to our company’s heart as we are committed to promoting diversity,” says Patricia Obozuwa, Vice President of Africa Coca Cola.
It should be recalled that since 2019, the 2022 edition of the Africa CEO Forum is the largest face-to-face gathering of the private sector.
