Accra, Ghana, 27 January 2025 – The Africa Prosperity Network (APN) has confirmed that over 3,000 delegates from more than 46 countries worldwide will converge at the Accra International Conference Centre (AICC) for the 2025 edition of the Africa Prosperity Dialogues (APD), scheduled to take place from Thursday 30 January to Saturday 1 February 2025.
The landmark gathering will feature seven confirmed African heads of state, reinforcing the event’s significance as a premier platform for advancing Africa’s economic integration and prosperity agenda.
This announcement was made during an APN/AfCFTA hybrid press conference for the 2025 APD, which took place at the AfCFTA Secretariat, Accra, on Monday 27 January 2025.
APD 2025, hosted by APN in collaboration with the AfCFTA Secretariat, will centre on the theme “Delivering the African Single Market Through Infrastructure: Invest. Connect. Integrate“. The Dialogues aim to galvanise public and private-sector stakeholders to accelerate infrastructure investments and integration critical to realising Africa’s vision of a single, interconnected continental market.
Importance and key partnerships
In his welcome address to the press conference, Sidig Faroug El Toum, chief executive officer of APN, emphasised the magnitude of the event. “This year’s Dialogues will be unprecedented in scope, with participation from diverse global players and leadership. Having over 3,000 delegates and seven heads of state join us in Accra highlights the immense interest in advancing Africa’s economic prospects through strategic infrastructure investments,” he said.
El Toum expressed his gratitude to APN’s partners for their role in the success of the APD. “We thank the African Continental Free Trade Area Secretariat for walking with us on this journey towards prosperity. We treasure the partnerships we have established with numerous actors. We also deeply appreciate the Ghanaian people for their warm hospitality, which has been instrumental in hosting this event successfully,“ he said.
Praising the media’s pivotal role in advancing the goals of the Africa Prosperity Dialogues, El Toum said: “We treasure and value our partnership with the media, and we sincerely thank them for their contributions [which] have materialised into a clearer and more influential role in shaping the Dialogues themselves, and we look forward to strengthening this collaboration.”
Infrastructure
The chief of staff at the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat, Rui Pedro Afonso Livramento, underscored the critical role of infrastructure in achieving the vision of a fully integrated African single market. He reaffirmed the Secretariat’s commitment to fostering collaborations to address infrastructure deficits that continue to impede intra-African trade.
“The AfCFTA has made significant strides since its inception, including establishing a solid institutional framework and recording growth in trade under the Guided Trade Initiative,” he said. “However, infrastructure remains a critical bottleneck. Inefficient transport and logistics add 30 to 40 per cent to intra-African trade costs, particularly affecting small and medium enterprises (SMEs).”
Progress and Collaboration
Rui Pedro Afonso Livramento highlighted that to address these challenges, the AfCFTA Secretariat has championed the establishment of trade aggregators to integrate SMEs into continental value chains. He commended countries such as China, Egypt, Kenya and South Africa for leading efforts in this regard. He called for stronger partnerships among governments, private-sector actors, and development partners to create an enabling environment for infrastructure development.
He said the theme “Delivering African Single Market Through Infrastructure: Invest. Connect. Integrate” for APD 2025 aims to underscore the importance of infrastructure development in realising the continent’s ambitious economic goals. “This theme emphasises the crucial role of infrastructure in enabling the free movement of products, services, and investments across borders,” Livramento said. “Infrastructure modernisation, enhanced connectivity, and digital innovation will be fundamental to unlocking the transformative potential of the AfCFTA.” He expressed optimism that the 2025 edition of the APD would generate valuable insights and build momentum to accelerate the AfCFTA’s implementation.
High-powered delegations
Stéphanie Diatta, head of partnerships and international relations at the APN Secretariat, outlined plans for APD 2025. She said that the event will bring together representatives from 46 countries, with seven heads of state having confirmed their attendance. She emphasised that this diverse and influential assembly will focus on strategic solutions aimed at transforming Africa’s borders into bridges of economic integration and opportunity.
The Dialogues will be graced by prominent personalities, including Mesfin Tasew, the Group CEO of Ethiopian Airlines, whose visionary leadership has elevated African aviation to the global stage. Other confirmed dignitaries include Ambassador Bridgette Motsepe, a respected advocate for economic empowerment in Africa; Dr Abdulhamid Al Khalifa, president of the OPEC Fund; and Dr Sidi Ould Tah, President of the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA). Also attending will be Dr Amany Asfour, president of the Africa Business Council, and Moh Damush, chief executive office of Telecel Group. Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, chair of the APN Advisory Council, and H.E. Wamkele Mene, secretary general of the AfCFTA Secretariat, will also play key roles in the discussions.
Breakfast meetings
Tonisha Tagoe, lead (breakfast meetings) at the APN Secretariat, expressed great enthusiasm as she shared exciting developments around APD 2025, particularly the expanded breakfast meeting series. Due to their importance, these meetings, typically side events, will have dedicated programming on the morning of day one, scheduled for 30 January from 8.30am to 12 noon. The breakfast meetings will provide a platform for vital discussions on Africa’s most pressing issues, with the goal of shaping strategies that will influence the continent’s future.
The six distinct sessions planned for the breakfast meetings will cover topics crucial for Africa’s long-term prosperity, including female entrepreneurship, housing, payments, youth empowerment, public-private partnerships and venture capital and private equity.
APN
The Africa Prosperity Network (APN) is a private non-profit organisation founded to advance the vision of “Africa We Want, as outlined in the African Union’s Agenda 2063. It strives to promote Africa’s progress, independent of external aid.
Africa Prosperity Dialogues (APD)
The Africa Prosperity Dialogues series offers a strategic platform where movers and shakers across Africa elevate the continent’s economic integration objectives from ambition to real action.
Set in Accra, APD is a one-of-a-kind event where African leaders from diverse areas of national endeavour gather each year to expedite, among other things, the implementation of the agreed initiatives within the AfCFTA trade bloc and shape the African Agenda for Action.
APD 2025
APD brings the continent’s critical challenges and industrialisation priorities into practical focus and aggressively advances the commercial and infrastructural interventions to achieve the vision of an Africa Beyond Aid.
Day one (30 January) will commence with the opening of the Projet Afrique exhibition, official side events and the opening ceremony for APD 2025, featuring international dignitaries. Key discussions by renowned experts will be on infrastructure funding, transport and logistics for free movement across Africa.
The day concludes with a welcome reception at the prestigious Kempinski Hotel Gold Coast City, Accra.
Day two (31 January) will focus on crucial topics, including sustainable energy solutions, digital infrastructure, manufacturing capacity, STEM education, health-care systems and sustainable urban development. Day two will also have an open forum with contributions from all participants on the central theme. These sessions will form the foundation for the summit’s outcome document setting out the recommendations emerging from the Dialogues.
The final day (1 February) marks the high-level Heads of State and Business Leaders’ Dialogues, culminating in a presidential round-table discussion on policy frameworks for private sector participation in building Africa’s single market. At least six heads of state have confirmed their participation in the round table. The day will feature two significant fireside conversations, on BADEA’s US$50 billion investment fund and with one of Africa’s most celebrated industrialists.
The summit will conclude on the night of the third day with the prestigious Africa Prosperity Champions Awards and Presidential Gala Dinner at the Kempinski Hotel in Accra, honouring individuals and organisations for their distinguished contribution to Africa’s prosperity and integration. The black-tie gala dinner will celebrate achievements that are inspiring the continent’s progress toward Agenda 2063 – its vision of “The Africa We Want”.
For more information, contact:
Wilberforce Asare, Media Relations Manager – APN
Email: w.asare@africaprosperity.network
Tel: +233 24 438 7050 / +233 20 899 1455
Joel Krampa, Communication Manager – APN
Email: j.krampa@africaprosperity.network
Tel: +233 20 136 9105
Kofi Nyarko Pong, Chief Operations Officer – APN
Email: k.nyarko-pong@africaprosperity.network
Tel: +233 26 445 3227
Signed.
Communication Directorate,
Africa Prosperity Network
For more details, visit: www.africaprosperitynetwork.com
To all media houses