The Africa CEO Forum (ACF) was recently launched at the annual meetings of the African Development Bank (AfDB) in Arusha, Tanzania
AfDB private sector operations director, Tim Turner, and vice president of Groupe Jeune Afrique and founder-executive producer of the event, Amir Ben Yahmed, will initiate proceedings at the forum.
The event will become the first international conference dedicated to top African companies, and will attempt to break the mould of typical sector-focused events and regular academic forums.
“It is dedicated at showcasing the initiatives and success stories of African entrepreneurship, allow entrepreneurs to share their experiences, and promote regional and intra-African trade,” said Tim Turner.
“As an annual gathering of Francophone and Anglophone Africa’s most brilliant CEO’s and major African and international decision makers, the ACF is a unique platform dedicated to support private sector-led growth in the country. In an increasingly connected world economy, it will also promote the rise of leading African companies”, said Amir Ben Yahmed, vice president of Groupe Jeune Afrique.
On November 20-21, 2012, it will bring together entrepreneurs, investors, financial decision-makers, and policy-makers in Geneva to promote the success of the African private sector. It will also provide a platform for public-private dialogue and high-level strategic solutions to support the development of companies and their African markets.
Several heads of Africa’s most prominent companies have already confirmed their attendance. Among them will be Aliko Dangote, CEO of Nigeria’s largest industrial conglomerate, Jean-Louis Billon, president of Sifca, Cote d'Ivoire’s biggest private employer, Issad Rebrad, CEO of Cevital, the leading private group in Algeria, Terrab Mostafa, CEO of the Moroccan company OCP, the world's major phosphates exporter, and Mark Cutifani, who heads South African mining group, AngloGold Ashanti.
Other major international company chiefs who have announced their attendance at the Geneva meeting include Tidjane Thiam, CEO of top British insurance group Prudential, and Sunny Verghese, CEO of Olam, the agribusiness multinational based in Singapore.
