The 53rd Session of the Commission and 2021 Conference of African Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development will commence today, Wednesday, March 17, 2021. The conference will end on Tuesday, 23^rd March 2021. It is under the theme: Africa’s Sustainable Industrialization and Diversification in the Digital Era in the Context of COVID-19.

This year’s theme embraces the need for African countries to achieve rapid economic growth through environmentally conscious industrialization and diversification. They must however do this while taking advantage of digitalization.

Meanwhile, the ECA noted that scaling-up digitalization in Africa could be transformational. Thus, helping Africa to sustainably industrialize and diversify within a global digital economy estimated to soon surpass $11.5 trillion. Discussions under the theme will explore and consolidate strategies on how to manage the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on African economies.

Specific areas

Also, the specific topic of the AfCFTA will enter into the ministerial, experts, and side event sessions. This is one of the particular tools available to African countries as they chart their recovery from COVID-19. Meanwhile, the AfCFTA has long been held as a vehicle for stimulating Africa’s overdue industrialization.

The upcoming AfCFTA protocol on e-commerce is expected to particularly enter the discussions. The Ministers’ resolutions from the conference are expected to outline the support they would want from the ECA in negotiating and implementing the AfCFTA e-commerce protocol. The side event ‘Report Launch: COVID-19 Impact on e-Commerce in Africa’, will consider options for the e-commerce protocol in the AfCFTA.

There will also be discussions on how Africa can generate its pharmaceutical sectors and the role of the AfCFTA within these. This is because COVID-19 has exposed Africa’s overreliance on international supply chains for medical research, equipment, and pharmaceuticals.

Main speakers

The conference will have an exciting line-up of confirmed speakers including: H.E. Mr. Abiy Ahmed, Prime Minister of Ethiopia and Mr. Ken Ofori-Atta, Minister of Finance, Ghana. Mr. Ken Ofori-Atta will frame the discourse of the conference on Africa’s recovery imperative

Also, Baroness Minouche Shafik, Former Deputy Governor of the Bank of England and former Deputy Managing Director IMF who will deliver a keynote statement. His address will focus on what the world can take away from the COVID-19 crisis, Brexit, trade, and what should Africa expect

Ms. Zainab Ahmed, Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Nigeria will lead a debate on the preparedness of the multilateral systems to support African countries in dealing with crises like COVID-19.

The Minister of Finance of Ethiopia, H.E. Mr. Ahmed Shide, will share Ethiopia’s COVID-19 recovery efforts. He will also touch on the policies that have been put in place to mitigate the impact of the pandemic.

Mr. Mohamed Benchaaboun, Minister of Economy, Finance and Administration Reform of Morocco, who will share his views on the implication of the crisis for emerging and middle-income economies. He will also focus on the macroeconomic fundamentals in mitigating the future impact.

Also, Mr. Jose Sele Yalaghuli, Minister of Finance, DRC will bring a finance Minister’s perspective to Africa’s vaccine imperatives for economic growth and recovery.

Tedros Adhanom, Director-General of the World Health Organization, and Mr. Benedict Oramah, President of Afreximbank who will lead discussions on Africa’s readiness to finance its vaccines.