Register to participate to the Conference, in Addis Ababa or online

The 2023 edition of the African Economic Conference (AEC), jointly organized by African Development Bank (AfDB), the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), will be held in Addis Ababa and in hybrid format from 16 – 18 November 2023.

The theme of this year’s conference is “The Imperatives for Sustainable Industrial Development in Africa” and will provide a platform for established academics and young researchers to present their solution-oriented research to policymakers and decision-makers.

The Conference will bring together a variety of stakeholders – including policymakers, industrialization experts, private sector representatives, researchers and young people – to discuss the challenges and prospects for the industrialization that Africa requires for its economic security and sustainable development. 

The AEC will provide an opportunity for participants to review the experience of industrialization on the continent, in particular since the advent of positive economic growth in the late 1990s, and to identify the challenges faced, lessons learned, opportunities and strategies for leveraging industrialization to realize its full potential for ensuring the economic security and sustainable development of Africa. It will also provide a platform for established academics and young researchers alike to present to policymakers and decision makers their solution-oriented research on how to strengthen the industrialization drive in Africa, with a view to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and the aspirations of Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want, of the African Union, in a way that leaves no one behind.

Discussions will focus on four pillars:

• Industrialization and global value chain integration in Africa

• Sustainable industrialization: the new frontier

• Financing industrialization in Africa

• The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and industrialization in Africa

Since its inception in 2006, the conference has fostered dialogue and the exchange of knowledge on a variety of issues and challenges that Africa has faced.

Register to participate to the Conference, in Addis Ababa or online

Concept Note

Context

Call for papers

Previous sessions

AEC 2023 – Quick Facts

1. The African Economic Conference (AEC) is the leading pan-African forum for discussing emerging economic challenges and opportunities.
2. The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) first organized the African Economic Conference in 2006 to enhance the development effectiveness of its operations and was duly joined by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in 2007.
3. The AEC is currently jointly organized by the AfDB, ECA and UNDP.
4. Past AECs have underlined the importance of adapting international policies, instruments and agreements and building local capacity of African States to address Africa's needs better.
5. AEC 2023 will carry the theme: “The Imperative for Industrial Development in Africa: Challenges and Prospects”. This edition will be an opportunity for participants to think creatively to reflect on Africa’s experience with industrialization, the political will variously expressed at national, regional, and global levels, as well as the evidence of where it has been successful globally, but particularly on the African continent, to help accelerate towards the achievement of the SDGs and aspirations of the African Union’s Agenda 2063.
6. The AEC 2023 conference will provide a platform for established academics and young researchers to present their solution-oriented research to decision-makers on strengthening Africa’s response to climate change and its ripple effects.