On this 9th of March 2023, Ms. Venicia GUINOT was invited by the United Nation’s Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) in West Africa chaired by HE Madam Ngone DIOP to speak on behalf of the public sector at the High-Level Dialogue and Pre-Conference of African Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development (COM 2023) that took place in Niamey, Niger. The theme was “Inequalities and vulnerabilities in West Africa in a context of multiple crises. Policy response for an inclusive and resilient recovery.”
Joining the committee of experts, Venicia GUINOT spoke on behalf of the TROPICS GROUP OF COMPANIES emphasizing the importance for the private sector to building back better by identifying concrete policy-based actions to accelerate SDGs progress through women and youth entrepreneurship and support efforts to build a resilient as well as more inclusive ecosystems while empowering the poorest countries in Sub-Saharan Africa.
As the ECA prepares for the 41st Conference of African Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development Dialogue 2023 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Ms. Venicia Guinot of the TROPICS GROUP contributed a few recommendations to the resolutions of this high-level meeting :
• African policies have to be adapted to context to be efficient. Monitoring and evaluation should be built into policy and programs from the start with proportionate but adequate resources allocated.
• Better policies to support entrepreneurs (SMME/SME/SMI) and create more jobs to build a new focus on adaptation and scale
• The implementation of a Continental Startup Act as emerging and comprehensive legal instrument should aim at fostering the creation and development of startups (SMME/SME/SMI), taking into account their particular needs. These policies should be designed through a participatory process involving the collaboration of different stakeholders in the entrepreneurship ecosystem (entrepreneurs, investors and the public-private sector at large).
• Africa needs to promote policies that support productive activities, creating decent jobs, encouraging the growth of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), and promoting Nation branding as a strategic imperative for sustainable market competitiveness.
• Seizing and creating opportunities to develop, plan and implement entrepreneurial projects with positive social and ecological impact.
• Putting communication and digital technology at the service of the SDGs by really focusing on a Nation Branding strategy or the creation of pan-African territorial brands as differentiation tools for the attractiveness of intra-African and foreign investment.
• Invest in Human Capital, Expertise and Capacity-Building. One root cause of poverty is the lack of access to markets and resources. Businesses can address this by providing skills training and financing options to women, youth and disadvantaged people and communities. Skills training shall help citizens acquire the abilities to qualify for quality jobs.
All of the experts observations including that of the TROPICS GROUP will be tabled up during the Conference of African Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia to maximize the pro- poor and inclusive outcomes of macroeconomic policies amid recurring crises and to implement urgent reforms that are essential to the global financial architecture to reduce poverty and inequality in Africa.
For more information about the ECA – Economic Commission for Africa, please visit https://uneca.org/
