Concept note of the Third Edition of the International Conference on the Emergence of Africa

Since the 2016 shocks, the global economy is recovering and global growth for 2018 is
estimated at 3.9%. The recovery observed in 2017 is expected to continue with global
growth remaining at 3.9% in 2019 according to the IMF. Africa is in this dynamic with an
acceleration of growth from 3.6% in 2017 to 4.1% in 2018 and 2019 (African Development
Bank, 2018: "Economic Outlook in Africa"). This improvement is mainly due to a more
favorable international situation (higher global growth, higher prices of raw materials,
especially oil, etc.), stronger domestic demand and higher agricultural production. This
African average masks the even more important performances of most countries
aiming at emergence (Côte d'Ivoire, Ethiopia, Ghana, Rwanda, Senegal, Tanzania ...)
whose economic growth is close to 7?tween 2016 and 2018. The economic
dynamics of these countries is supported in particular by the private sector and
internal consumption, but also by public investments intended to upgrade
infrastructure.

The International Conference on the Emergence of Africa (CIEA) was set up to support
this dynamic. More specifically, it aims to support the development of capacities to
prepare and implement emergence plans by pooling expertise and documenting
good practices in this area. The first two editions of the CIEA have shown that several
African countries are aiming for emergence. To this end, they formulated emergence
plans supported by long-term visions in line with the principles of the African Union
2063 Agenda. To achieve this ambition in the long term, countries will face major
challenges such as: (i) the achievement of strong consensus between all actors
(politics, civil society, national private sector ...) on the long-term vision to facilitate the
maintenance of the course and perseverance in the reforms beyond the vagaries of
electoral cycles, (ii) the development of individual and collective leadership to ensure
a strategic and operational management of the emergence which, as a bet on the
future , is planned and built in a stable environment (peace, security, respect for
human rights, transparency ...).
It was the spirit of the 2015 Abidjan Declaration that called on African actors, starting
with governments, to engage in common strategic watchand thinking on the issues
that could impact the march towards emergence. The Declaration noted the need to
hold a Good Practice Forum every two years. This biannual event is beginning to take
shape and becomes more and more the framework where African actors
(government, private sector, civil society, universities ...) exchange on common

constraints and challenges in order to find solutions that are in line with the African
context, but which also benefit from lessons learned in Africa and elsewhere. 
II. Problem
The first edition of the CIEA (CIEA-I), held from March 18 to 20, 2015, allowed to discuss
the conditions of the emergence of Africa in the light of current dynamics and lessons
learned from economic transformations and not only in emerging countries,
especially China, Brazil, India and Malaysia, but also in some African countries. His
Declaration outlined the emergence model that the continent has chosen in view of its
specificities.
The second edition of the ICAE (ICAE-II), held from March 28 to 30, 2017, focused on the
challenges of implementing emergence plans in Africa. Meeting these challenges
requires, at all levels, starting with the state and public administrations, key
competencies, rigor, organization, strong commitment and mobilizing the necessary
funding.
Currently, several African countries aspiring to move towards emergence are seeing
their economic growth supported by public investment in infrastructure. These
investments are certainly likely to stimulate growth by attracting private investment,
but their sustained development over time could be limited by the constraint of
indebtedness. In this context, the debate is increasingly focused on the need (if not the
urgency) to significantly increase the contribution of the private sector to growth so
that it remains strong, sustainable and takes into account opportunities on the horizon
(continental free-trade zone, expansion of the size of the African market and the
middle class, rapid urbanization ...).
Taking advantage of these positive signals to accelerate the structural transformation
requires a national private sector committed to invest heavily in order to trigger new
growth engines, particularly in sectors where African demand is growing rapidly
(manufacturing industries, agro-food industries, consumer goods and equipment,
appliances, spare parts, support services ...) taking into account the digital revolution
and its impact on the production methods of goods and services. It also requires the
development of competitive industries in sectors where African countries have
comparative advantages or can work together; it is essential to gain market share at
the national, regional and global levels to create more wealth and jobs on the ground. 
Developing national champions and transforming them into African champions
should facilitate this dynamic, allow the emergence of integrated channels with a
fabric of more competitive SMEs and gain market share for export. This is one of the
ways to generate a more sustainable base of internal resources that can support the
financing of public policies. Seen in this light, the march towards the emergence of

African countries goes hand in hand with the development of innovative national
champions capable of taking risks in the long term.
In most African countries, especially those aspiring to become emerging, this debate is
taking shape and requires practical solutions to enable the private sector to
contribute to a more sustainable growth dynamic. Going in this direction requires a
strong national private sector, committed in the long term and supported by strong
partnerships with a developmental state (as defined in the ICELA-I Abidjan
Declaration). With this in mind, the private sector, led by its national champions, will be
the key player in boosting the structural transformation of the economy and
accelerating progress towards emergence. To this end, it will have to participate in the
co-construction, impetus and implementation of structural reforms and strategic
investments with strong training effect on structural transformation. This will enable
African countries to maintain a strong and inclusive growth dynamic that can support
the process of capital accumulation and economic diversification. 
Alongside the acceleration and maintenance of growth over time, the other issue is
that of its quality in the sense of greater inclusiveness in an environment marked by
the strong aspiration of populations to well-being and a better governance. In this
context, it is important to reconcile the long-term requirements arising from the
necessary structural transformation of the economies, and those of the short term
because of a pressing social demand related to poverty and inequalities. Indeed, the
feasibility (or even the credibility) of the emergence processes requires that they
progressively produce human development results in accordance with the African
Union's 2063 and 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development. This supposes taking into
account the links between the valuation of the territories' economic opportunities and
the reduction of economic and geographical inequalities. Achieving these long-term
and short-term demands requires full support from the people and their involvement
in the conduct of all stages of the emergence process, subordinated to a social
contract whose terms must be clear, based on a shared vision and to be part of a
perspective of accountability.
Building on the lessons learned from the first two editions and taking into account the
current dynamics, the 3rd edition of the CIEA (CIEA-III) will deal with the development of
the private sector and the emergence of national champions as necessary conditions
for the success of the African emergence plans. In addition to this central issue, the
Conference will also deal with the modalities of the contribution of the private sector
to the inclusion and enhancement of the economic opportunities of the territories, and
this within the framework of fruitful public-private partnerships. 
To enhance the credibility of the CIEA, the 2019 meeting will be an opportunity to take
stock of the implementation of the resolutions of the two previous editions of CIEA and
to identify new perspectives. Its credibility also depends on the ability to positively
impact the preparations and ongoing revisions of emergence plans in several African

countries. To this end, the CIEA-III will be an opportunity to make some innovations by
capitalizing on the results of the first two editions. Thus, the conduct of national case
studies will be an opportunity to review ongoing emergence processes on the
continent and to highlight the good practices of African countries. Moreover, in
addition to the private sector which will be at the center of the preparation and the
holding of the CIEA-III, the African Network of Delivery Units will be strongly involved in
the scientific organization so that it appropriates this event and strengthens
collaboration between its members. This interaction between the members of the
Network will be facilitated by the digital collaborative exchange platform dedicated to
the sharing of experiences and solutions likely to remove the constraints regularly
encountered by African countries. This platform will also be the place where these
actors can find the latest generation of tools and methods available in Africa or
elsewhere in the world.