Conference reflections

Three of those who attended the africa development forum in morocco set out their hopes

Cote d'Ivoire

Cote d'Ivoire Minister for Economy and Finance Niale Kaba says her country is rich in natural resources, especially agricultural resources. The country is the world's largest producer and exporter of cocoa beans and a significant producer and exporter of coffee and palm oil. It also produces cashew nuts and gold. Its favorable natural conditions have made it an ideal place to invest, Kaba says.

"We have a legal framework for foreign investment. For example, we have an investment code specifically designed for foreign investors. It tells them how to set up business in our country, and it offers guidance and insight to them on which sectors are a priority and are of most interest to Cote d'Ivoire," she says.

The country is dedicated to transforming its natural resources, including agriculture and mining, into principal sectors that can generate more sustainable development through improvements in technology and investment and adding value to the products. She says foreign investors can play a vital role in facilitating this transformation.

"As a major cocoa producer, we are exporting only 20 percent of our capacity. And for cashew nuts, we expect to be the largest exporter in the world in two years," she says. "So we should create a collaborative partnership to develop these industries. We have business promotion centers for investors, from where they can obtain all the relative investment information for my country."

But she says there is also the matter of good governance in Africa, and many African countries have tried to make their governments more transparent and improve their management.

"Efforts have been made to better secure and control the budget. Also, a strengthening of public administration is a good approach to foster better governance."

She notes, however: "We still have challenges in transforming our resources, so operators on the ground should work with the state to tackle them."

One problem is that some foreign investors drive such a hard bargain that the deals mainly benefit the companies instead of Cote d'Ivoire, she says.

"We are all looking at laws and regulations to make the system work properly," she adds.

Cape Verde

Cristina Duarte, minister of finance and planning in Cape Verde, recently announced her campaign for the presidency of the African Development Bank. Duarte has served for nine years under Jose Maria Neves, prime minister of Cape Verde, which gained its independence Portugal in 1975.

She says the bank is trying to live up to its promise as the "Africa's premier development finance institution".

"The progress of the last decade and the challenges of rapid growth can't be neglected," she says. "Africa's structural transformation can only be guaranteed if we are able to build the right governance and business environment in Africa."

She also says it is vital to grow the African private sector along the spectrum from micro, small and medium to big enterprises. The bank must create mechanisms to awaken and capitalize on the entrepreneurship that exists in African culture.

Another challenge for Africa is to undertake the socioeconomic transformation that African organizations need to promote to be more efficient and effective in order to be globally competitive, according to Duarte.

"Socioeconomic transformation is possible only with change in attitude and even culture," she says.

Innovation and creativity are also crucial, she says.

"We have no choice but to raise our creative and innovative energies, and build the ecosystems and the institutional and organizational environments that are conducive to innovation and in the service of the people," she says.

When talking about mobilizing national resources for development, she says an important factor that is too often neglected is time.

"We can't accept that the mobilization of financing and the realization of investments will take place only in the long term. Time is not on our side," she says. "We need to realize that if we continue to rely only on external sources, we will not win the battle of time."

Morocco

King Mohamed VI of Morocco says greater cooperation between African nations has laid the groundwork for the continent to determine its own development models and priorities, according to his message of welcome to delegates at the Ninth Africa Development Forum, delivered by Prime Minister Abdelilah Benkirane.

"Our continent is determined to adopt a proactive approach and set in motion a dynamic process for the emergence of a new Africa - an Africa that is proud of its identity; a modern Africa that has washed its hands of ideologies and archaic notions; a bold, enterprising Africa," his message says.

The issue of development in Africa is not related to the nature of the soil or the climate, but rather to deep-rooted economic dependence, weak support, inadequate sources of financing and the lack of a sustainable model, the king says. Thus the international community should take a more objective approach to development issues in Africa, he says.

While the international community needs to look at Africa in a new way, Africans must initiate more original, inclusive and mutually beneficial South-South cooperation programs, he says.

"Africa needs win-win partnerships rather than conditional support - partnerships that can act as a catalyst for mobilizing financial resources, fostering regional economic integration and improving Africa's position in the international value creation chain," he says.

"Moreover, the international community's mobilization to support Africa financially should include other important dimensions and parameters such as good governance, strong institutions, institutional reliability and capacity-building, regional and intergenerational cohesion and human resources development."

lilianxing@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily Africa Weekly 10/31/2014 page7)