The Canada-Africa Chamber of Business announces
collaboration with McGill University
Explore the world’s largest growth market by potential and the success indicators for Pan-African economic growth. The program below was be conducted in English and French on Wednesday 25 August 2021, welcoming a dozen speakers and numerous participants from the private sector, academia and public policy.
On 1 January 2021, Phase I of the African Continent Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) came into effect.
This current generation of students and youth-at-large can realize the establishment of the world’s biggest free trade area by growth potential – of that we can be sure.
The Canada-Africa Chamber of Business is honoured to showcase, promote, convene, and have participated in free trade deliberations in Canada and at the African Union – toward securing effective implementation of the agreement.
Together with McGill University, the High Commission of Ghana and the Embassy of Senegal, we explored the liberation of the continent’s enormous economic potential, through open markets, enterprise and youth leadership.
Themes included:
- Advancing investment and entrepreneurship for a dynamic and fast-changing world
- Exploring free trade and economic empowerment, including of women through measures for equality under the law
- Discovering and connecting young people to opportunities in entrepreneurship, policy & research
- Deepening understanding about why Africa is vital to Canada’s medium-to-long term prosperity, and Canada’s role as an ally in Africa’s prosperity
- Developing effective partnerships that will bring together the globe’s trusted third party, Canada, and the world’s future growth engine – a single African market.
The African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) is the culmination of decades of efforts by Africans pushing for a more integrated continent; transcending old artificial borders imposed arbitrarily and creating new interconnected, dynamic markets and their sustaining institutions.
ORDER OF PROCEEDINGS
10:00 Call to Order
10:01 Mr. Sebastian Spio-Garbrah (Chair of The Canada-Africa Chamber of Business)
10:10 Prof. Fabrice Labeau, Deputy Provost, Student Life and Learning (McGill University)
10:18 Introduction of Country Heads (Dr. Nii Addy, Associate Director, Africa Outreach, McGill University)
10:20 Mr. Mawutor Alifo, Acting High Commissioner, High Commission of the Republic of Ghana (headquarters of the AfCFTA Secretariat)
10:25 Her Excellency, Ambassador Viviane Bampassy, Embassy of the Republic of Senegal
10:30 McGill Alumnae Speakers – Dr. Dorothy Okello, Dean, School of Engineering, College of Engineering, Design, Art and Technology (CEDAT), Makerere University & Ms. Marie Chantal Messier, Assistant Vice President & Global Head of Food and Industry Affairs at Nestlé
10:50 Youth Speakers – Mune Mafusire, McGill Graduate Student and Inaugural Chamber Fellow and Akinyi J. Eurallyah, Advocate of the High Court of Kenya and 2021 Chamber Graduate Fellow
11:10 Q&A
11: 15 Responding to the Opportunity: Fred McMahon, Head of the Economic Freedom of the World Annual Index, Fraser Institute
11:25 Concluding remarks (President, Garreth Bloor)
11:30 Virtual open networking
12:00 Virtual meeting link closes