At a high level, the thematic focus of the summit will be placed on integrated socio-economic development for Africa in the post-Covid-19 era, touching on topics such as needed skills/education, technologies, investments, and policies to help remove the reputational burden that results from negative stories about Africa and being African, while enhancing the ones that generate general goodwill.
Negative stories stand in the path of Africa’s sustainable development.
As different African countries begin to look at ways to open-up their borders for international tourism, industry leaders and experts from across the world will tackle the topic of how Africa can attract a bigger share of the lucrative MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Events) market, which also constitute business tourism.
There will also be a dedicated discussion about the state of social justice in Africa, as well as the impact of African politics on the continent’s image.
The 2020 Africa Brand Summit would not happen without the support of brands such as Grobank, SA Cities Network, Distell and Total South Africa, none of which wanted 2020 to pass by without having done something to push the boundaries against all odds.
“For us at Grobank we cannot afford to be left out of any discussion that looks at what needs to be done to turn Africa from current net importer of food crops to a more self-reliant net exporter of food crops. While the Africa Brand Summit is a relatively new platform for hosting this debate, we believe it brings a fresh perspective to it and moves it from a silo into a broader basket of related topics that all inform perceptions about the continent,” said Bennie Van Rooy, CEO of Grobank.
Considering that destination reputation can open doors for whole baskets of foreign exchange earning opportunities for cities, regions, and countries in Africa; or render such doors hard to open, keeping opportunities at bay, the SA Cities Network will bring a number of global experts on city development to discuss ways African cities can be turned into vibrant places for residents and magnets for investment and business opportunities.
Cities all over the world, including in Africa, sit right at the forefront of local government, at the coalface of service delivery to citizens. The South African Cities Network collaborates with others in Africa and around the world to exchange ideas on best practice in urban development and city management, all of which are done to benefit residents. “We believe that optimally developed spatial planning is good for growth; well-served residents make happy citizens; happy citizens make happy countries; happy countries are productive countries. We chose to participate in the 2020 Africa Brand Summit in order to locate the work we do in the context of aligning urban development with other spheres of destination management and to working with others to reverse negative perceptions of our continent,” said Sithole Mbanga, CEO of SA Cities Network.
Summit organisers also thank the support by Total South Africa, part of a global petroleum brand that has been operating across the African continent for many years. It is for this and other reasons that they found it to make sense to partner with this energy major, welcoming its sponsorship of the 2020 Africa Brand Summit.
The 2020 Africa Brand Summit will be hosted from Monday, 5 October, to Thursday, 8 October, with the core summit happening on Wednesday, 7 October, and Thursday, 8 October.
For more information:
Email: oc.timmusdnarbacirfa@ofni, or
Michelle Booth : az.oc.secnerefnocsrenrut@BellehciM
Registrations and award nominations for the 2020 Africa Brand Summit are pen at: www.africabrandsummit.co
