Africa Collective, AfCFTA Secretariat and Afreximbank launch Expanded Africa-Focused Programme for Davos 2025

Weeklong Agenda of Events to Feature New Startup-Investor Lunch, Partner and Media Receptions, Thematic Sessions with Host Partner Afreximbank and Lead Partners Novartis and Standard Bank Group, a networking reception, as well as Closing & Outlook Luncheon.

Switzerland, Davos, 01 November 2024: Africa Collective, with African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) as its Host Partner and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat as its Patronage Partner, is unveiling an expanded series of Africa-focused events at Davos 2025 bringing new programming, additional partner spaces, and dedicated sessions alongside corporate partners to advance African economic and investment agendas on the margins of the World Economic Forum annual agenda from 20 to 24 January 2025. 

Africa Collective Davos 2025 will be supported by both longstanding and new partners of the initiative, including, Novartis, a global innovative medicines company headquartered in Switzerland, and Standard Bank, the biggest bank in Africa by assets, as Lead Partners, as well as Old Mutual, a pan-African investment, savings, insurance, and banking group,  and Ventures Platform, Africa’s leading early-stage venture capital firm, as Supporting Partners.

This year’s program will also include several exciting firsts, including the Digital Network Davos x Africa Collective Startup and Investor Lunch on navigating African investment opportunities amidst global uncertainty and a dedicated Partner Lounge at the Hard Rock Hotel Davos, hosting a Partner Reception to launch the week’s events and a Media Reception. 

The weeklong program will offer enhanced opportunities to engage and elevate African priorities through targeted events with the program lineup also including:

• Three Key Thematic Roundtables: Hosted in the Glass Pavilion, drawing leaders to discuss priority topics.
• Networking Cocktail: Co-hosted by Afreximbank, offering cross-sector networking opportunities.
• Closing Luncheon: An exclusive event hosted at the iconic Chapel to conclude the week featuring a high-level panel dialogue with panelists and participants, including decision-makers from the public and private sectors. 

Each event is designed to foster impactful business discussions amongst private-sector leaders as well as public-sector representatives from Africa and beyond, offering unparalleled opportunities for networking and collaboration.

Prominent media partners CNBC Africa, African Business Magazine, and Business Insider Africa will bring in-depth coverage of the week’s critical discussions, further amplifying Africa’s voice and priorities at Davos.

Please visit the LinkedIn Page for more information about Africa Collective and updates on the programme and activities in Davos and beyond. 

ENDS

About the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat

The AfCFTA is the world’s largest free trade area bringing together the 55 countries of the African Union (AU) and eight (8) Regional Economic Communities (RECs). The overall mandate of the AfCFTA is to create a single continental market with a population of about 1.4 billion people and a combined GDP of approximately US$ 3.4 trillion. The AfCFTA is one of the flagship projects of Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want, the African Union’s long-term development strategy for transforming the continent into a global powerhouse.

The AfCFTA Secretariat coordinates and facilitates the implementation of the AfCFTA agreement among African states.  It also engages stakeholders to promote the AfCFTA and undertakes trade and investment promotion activities to enhance intra-African trade, among other duties.

For more information, visit: www.au-afcfta.org

About Afreximbank

African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) is a Pan-African multilateral financial institution mandated to finance and promote intra-and extra-African trade. For 30 years, the Bank has been deploying innovative structures to deliver financing solutions that support the transformation of the structure of Africa’s trade, accelerating industrialization and intra-regional trade, thereby boosting economic expansion in Africa. A stalwart supporter of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), Afreximbank has launched a Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) that was adopted by the African Union (AU) as the payment and settlement platform to underpin the implementation of the AfCFTA.

Working with the AfCFTA Secretariat and the AU, the Bank is setting up a US$10 billion Adjustment Fund to support countries effectively participating in the AfCFTA. At the end of December 2023, Afreximbank’s total assets and guarantees stood at over US$37.3 billion, and its shareholder funds amounted to US$6.1 billion. Afreximbank has investment grade ratings assigned by GCR (international scale) (A), Moody’s (Baa1), Japan Credit Rating Agency (JCR) (A-) and Fitch (BBB). Afreximbank has evolved into a group entity comprising the Bank, its impact fund subsidiary called the Fund for Export Development Africa (FEDA), and its insurance management subsidiary, AfrexInsure (together, “the Group”). The Bank is headquartered in Cairo, Egypt.

For more information, visit: www.afreximbank.com

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About Africa Collective

Africa Collective is an information, exchange and collaboration platform for Africa. Its network, events and publications are focused on advancing the African continent globally. Through its network, events, and publications, Africa Collective champions the continent’s interests and opportunities on the global stage. The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat has proudly supported the initiative as Patronage Partner from the beginning, while Africa Unlimited is the Management Partner. Together with key partners—including Afreximbank, Novartis, Standard Bank, and Old Mutual, amongst others, Africa Collective combines forces, resources and existing initiatives to amplify Africa’s voice and advance its position on the global stage.

Africa Collective was formed during a high-level business roundtable on Africa in Davos, Switzerland, at the time of the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in January 2020. Based on the impactful discussions between pan-African and global leaders held on the occasion, Africa Collective was formally launched together with the AfCFTA Secretariat as a patronage partner and in the presence of H.E. Wamkele Mene, Secretary General of the AfCFTA Secretariat, at an inaugural luncheon held on 

19 January 2023.

The platform is an all-year, pan-African initiative by and for private & public sector players on the continent. Besides its yearly flagship representation in Davos (2020, 2023, 2024 and upcoming 2025 agenda), the platform has a strong presence at critical events in Africa and beyond, including the Africa CEO Forum, AfCFTA Business Forum “Biashara Afrika” and AfCFTA Intra-African Trade Fair. 

For more information, visit: www.africacollective.com and LinkedIn Page