By
Busayo Sotunde
VENTURES AFRICA – This week, Central Bank Governors and Finance Ministers across Africa are expected to meet in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, to discuss the future economic growth of the continent.
The meeting, which will take place on 1st - 2nd of August, 2012 will focus on the continent’s economic problems while making an attempt to find lasting solutions that will ensure food security, energy access, job creation particularly for the youth.
The meeting will also tackle the issue of poverty in Africa.
Apart from the Central Bank Governors and the Finance Ministers that will be present at the assembly, representatives from other international development agencies and financial institutions will also be in attendance to contribute their own quota to the problem-solving meeting.
The keynote address will be delivered by UNIDO Director General, Kandeh K. Yumkella. He will be speaking on how to boost agricultural productivity in the continent. Yumkella is a strong advocate for pro-poor sustainable industrial and agribusiness development as a means of wealth and job creation and the economic empowerment of the poor.
As the co-editor of UNIDO’s publication: “Agribusiness for Africa’s Prosperity,” DG Yumkella posits that a new agricultural development policy is needed to meet the economic and social development needs of the continent.
He said this new approach calls specifically for moving away from subsistence farming to the use of modern technologies and agro-industrials that promote mechanisation.
The Africa Caucus Meeting was formed following the Monterrey Convention of 2002 in Mexico. It comprises of African member countries of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) seeking to engage other policy makers around the continent in addressing issues relating to Africa’s economic transformation.
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