THE 8th edition of the CEO Africa Annual Roundtable started in Victoria Falls yesterday focusing on the agenda to encourage businesses to pursue various undertakings to rejuvenate the Zimbabwean economy following the easing of Covid-19 restrictions.
Business leaders and influencers locally and from across Africa are attending the annual event which ends on Saturday under the theme “Advancing Systematic Leadership and Shaping a Better Future for All”.
In 2020, the annual event was not held due to measures aimed at preventing the spread of Covid-19, which also saw last year’s event being attended by a limited number of delegates.
CEO Africa Roundtable chief executive officer Mr Kipson Gundani said this year’s event would be attended by over 200 delegates from within Zimbabwe as well as outside the country in Sadc and West Africa.
He said the 2021 conference focused on galvanising strategies to emerge from the Covid-19 pandemic and leveraging on that agenda delegates at this year’s event were looking at strategies that foster the transactional agenda by the business community.
CEO Africa Roundtable chief executive officer Kipson Gundani said in an interview earlier this week that the ongoing conference had attracted local and regional participants.
“We are looking at 250 delegates attending the CEO Africa Annual Roundtable conference, which begins at Elephant Hills Hotel in Victoria Falls on Wednesday. The upcoming event follows last year’s conference which focused on galvanising strategies to emerge out of the Covid situation taking into account the sectoral approach.
“This year’s event is transactional oriented where we are now saying, emerging out of the Covid-19 pandemic, this is now the defining moment for businesses to transact looking at issues of leadership and governance, the privatisation agenda, and investing in real estate, among other issues,” he said.
Deliberations will also be centred on transforming State-owned enterprises into champions, innovative ways to deal with supply issues and geopolitical shifts, and boosting agribusiness-promoting the use of agro-technologies to improve productivity throughout the agriculture value chain.
High profile delegates include Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) Governor Dr John Mangudya, Grain Millers Association of Zimbabwe chairman Tafadzwa Musarara, Agriseeds managing director Mr Simon Nyanhete, Agricultural and Rural Development Authority chief executive officer Mr Tinotenda Mhiko, West Properties managing director Mr Ken Sharpe and Africa Economic Development Strategies executive director Professor Gift Mugano.
Other top delegates include the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Africa Regional Service Centre George Lwanda, African Union-Diaspora African Forum Americas chair Dr Arikana Chihombori, Ministers Dr Sekai Nzenza (Industry and Commerce Minister), Dr Anxious Masuka (Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development), Professor Mthuli Ncube (Finance and Economic Development), and policymakers from the private and public sectors.
CEO Africa Roundtable is a high-level platform for corporate chief executive officers and senior executives in public and private sectors, created to advance economic development across Africa. – The Herald
