The Republic of Namibia will from 30th July -1 August 2018 host the third SADC Industrialisation Week (SIW) at Safari Court Hotel and Conference Centre in Windhoek under the theme Promoting Infrastructure and Youth Empowerment for Sustainable Development.
The SADC Council of Ministers endorsed the convening of the annual SADC Industrialization Week to intensify engagement with various partners, including the Private Sector in order to accelerate the implementation of the SADC Industrialization Strategy and Roadmap 2015-2063 which was approved by the SADC Summit of Heads of State and Government in April 2015 in Harare, Zimbabwe.
The SADC Industrialisation Week is a public-private engagement platform that helps to foster new opportunities for intra-African trade and investment in the southern African region.
The first Industrialisation Week was held in Matsapha, Kingdom of Eswatini in August 2016 under the theme “Resource Mobilization for Investment in Sustainable Energy Infrastructure for an Inclusive SADC Industrialization and for the Prosperity of the Region”. The second was held in July 2017 at Sunninghill in South Africa under the theme “Partnering with the Private Sector in Developing Industry and Regional Value-Chains”.
The commemoration of the 2018 SADC Industrialization Week aims to:
- Spread knowledge among the SADC community at large, including Governments, private sector, academia, research institutions and think tanks, members of the public, etc.; to ensure wider understanding and acceptability of the Strategy;
- Acquire and use the knowledge and opportunities arising from the implementation of the Strategy by the wider SADC community with the ultimate objective of improving one’s social and economic life;
- Elicit action from the various stakeholders, including the regional, continental and international private sector, on the implementation of the Industrialization Strategy and build coalitions to enhance understanding and cooperation among stakeholders on how to implement the Industrialization Strategy including the development of regional value chains;
- Increase engagement on the Industrialization Strategy at national and regional levels and in particular, encourage youth and women participation and innovation in the 2018 Industrialization Week to showcase their innovations.
Original source: SADC
Published on 18 July 2018
