The President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has received the strategic policy document from the 2024 Africa Prosperity Dialogues (APD), which proposes interoperability across Africa. Interoperability enables different computerised products or systems to readily connect and exchange information.
According to President Akufo-Addo, that item in the recommendations is achievable with political will among member states on the continent. He has promised to present the entire document at the next African Union Heads of State meeting next month.
President Akufo-Addo has also promised to work with his colleague heads of state to implement interoperability across Africa.
President Akufo-Addo was speaking at the closing ceremony of the 3-day second Africa Prosperity Dialogues held in Peduase Presidential Lodge, near Aburi, in the Akuapim South Municipality of the Eastern Region last week.
“Just like I did last, I intend, with the support of my colleagues, to present the Peduase Compact to the 37th Ordinary Assembly of Heads of States and Governments in Addis Ababa in three weeks’ time,” the president, who is hosting the event for the last time, said.
He continued that, “There are items in this compact which I believe can quickly be implemented if we are able to mobilise the needed political will, such as achieving interoperability across Africa. I promise, with the support of my colleagues, to do what we can to make interoperability a reality across member states.”
DON’T UNDERESTIMATE
The President told the organisers of the event, sponsors and participants not to underestimate what they had achieved with the three days’ dialogues.
He reminded them that they had articulated some “specific, tangible” and “price-taggable projects” that could be put on the table for real action.
He mentioned the railway link across Africa and a dedicated airline with long-term financial guarantees to link Africa with the Caribbean, among others.
The theme for the three-day summit was “Delivering Prosperity in Africa: Produce, Add Value, and Trade.”
The key issue at the dialogue was economic integration in Africa, using the Africa Continental Free Area (AfCFTA) as the launch pad.
STRATEGIC POLICIES
After the summit with business leaders on the third day of the dialogues, the Heads of State and government representatives committed to thirteen (13) strategic policies.
The first was to “leverage public-private partnership (PPP) arrangements to increase investments in infrastructure development, with a specific focus on transportation, logistics, and digital infrastructure, while fostering deeper intra-African trade and enhancing connectivity for African countries to global markets.
Second, “incentivize financial institutions to increase their support for businesses in the manufacturing sector to charge favourable interest rates. These institutions can provide loans to manufacturers for capital investment, expanding production facilities, or acquiring machinery and equipment.”
Third, “oil-rich African nations would actively foster the development of integrated refineries by leveraging innovative financing mechanisms and private sector participation. The adoption of such integrated operations aims not only to diminish reliance on imported petrochemicals but also to relieve pressure on the country’s constrained foreign exchange reserves, ultimately contributing to improved macroeconomic stability.”
Fourth, “enhance trade facilitation by simplifying customs procedures, reducing trade barriers, and standardising regulations, and simultaneously, strengthen Africa’s integration into regional and global value chains.”
Fifth, “establish an enabling environment for industrialisation by promoting diversified and value-added manufacturing, fostering innovation, skill development, and investments in sectors beyond primary commodities, both within and beyond the global value chains.
Sixth, “deepen regional integration efforts and leverage the AfCFTA agreement to integrate into regional and global value chains and utilise regional economic communities to enhance intra-African trade, creating larger markets and economies of scale.”
All 13 policies were read by the founder and executive chairman of the African Prosperity Network, organisers of the African Prosperity Dialogues, Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko, who presented the policy document to President Akufo-Addo for onward submission to the AU
