KEY THEMES
Each edition of IABW addresses the challenges and strategic opportunities in the sectors that guide the development of Italy and Africa.
Infrastrutture
The infrastructure deficit is one of the most prevalent problems in most African States.
Italian know-how in this sector can be decisive in optimizing the use of resources so as to allow African states to reach their full economic potential.
Renewable energy
In a large part of the African continent, there are still no networks capable of guaranteeing total electricity coverage of the territory, with all the inconveniences that the absence of electricity entails nowadays.
Renewable energies could be the best solution to the lack of electricity; in fact, new technologies, as well as solar or wind could, in many cases, compensate for this gap in a totally eco-sustainable, economically and politically advantageous way (many states in the world suffer from dependence on oil).
Agricolture and Agribusiness
The agro-food sector, ranging from agriculture to agro-industry, is one of the potential engines for growth in the countries of sub-Saharan Africa. Agriculture employs 60% of the population and accounts for 24% of the region's GDP.
It also contributes, more than any other sector, to global income growth in rural areas; it stimulates growth in other sectors of the economy (increasing demand for goods and services produced outside the sector), reduces overall levels of poverty, hunger and malnutrition.
Agriculture and agribusiness are two of the most promising sectors for the development of the African continent.
Innovative start-ups and news technologies
The average age of the entire African continent, 19, tells a lot about the creative opportunities embodied by the startups that animate the continent: Rwanda and Ethiopia are, in this sense, the giants of Africa. Innovation is now the key to the transformation of economies, from global to digital: the internet and mobile telephony are fundamental resources for access to knowledge and know-how.
Reducing the digital divide, making the most of resources and enhancing African creativity by putting new technologies and European technological know-how at the service of basic needs is the key to promoting growth, knowledge and sustainable development
Biomedical
Health is a primary good for any country, but it is also a powerful driving force of economic well-being since, in order to function, a health system needs health personnel and industry that produces the medical technologies necessary for prevention, diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation.
The medical device sector can contribute significantly to this change of pace in African countries, creating the conditions for development of not only economic but also social value.
Textile and fashion
Creativity in the textile sector of a large part of the African continent goes hand in hand with the production of raw materials, from cotton to vegetable fibers to semi-finished leather. Out of 54 nations on the continent, 38 are producers of high-quality cotton. A sector, that of fashion, which is already exploding in Africa: the international fashion weeks in Nigeria, Ghana and South Africa attract, every year, a vast audience of high economic importance and not just African. In this context, “Made in Italy”, which alone represents a quality brand recognized throughout the world, can play a strategic role both in sourcing ideas and raw materials and in transferring skills and creating new growth opportunities in Africa.
Tourism and security
Safaris and tourist villages, backpack-in-shoulder climbing and trips, modern towns full of clubs and with rich nightlife, forums and high-level cultural events, today Africa has partly stripped itself of that romantic and stereotypical veneer of yellow and sandy streets, drums and big game hunting.
The complexity, diversity and poignant beauty of so many areas of the continent makes Africa a perfect place to create economy via tourism.
There are many Italian companies that, in this sector, have carved out a space of quality and important economy in the country in which they are established.
Waste management
The major urbanization of several cities in Africa poses a major challenge, which is fundamental to the quality of life and environmental protection: urban waste management and water treatment.
Potential future African smart-cities, with a view to improving services and substantially reducing operating costs, have the need for more intelligent and efficient collection systems and disposal systems with low environmental impact and ample recycling capacity.
The global technological revolution is transforming the way we think about waste management: Africa, in this, represents a great opportunity for experimentation, development and growth.
Infrastructures
The infrastructure deficit is one of the most prevalent problems in most African States.
Italian know-how in this sector can be decisive in optimizing the use of resources so as to allow African states to reach their full economic potential.
Renewable energy
In a large part of the African continent, there are still no networks capable of guaranteeing total electricity coverage of the territory, with all the inconveniences that the absence of electricity entails nowadays.
Renewable energies could be the best solution to the lack of electricity; in fact, new technologies, as well as solar or wind could, in many cases, compensate for this gap in a totally eco-sustainable, economically and politically advantageous way (many states in the world suffer from dependence on oil).
Agricolture and Agribusiness
The agro-food sector, ranging from agriculture to agro-industry, is one of the potential engines for growth in the countries of sub-Saharan Africa. Agriculture employs 60% of the population and accounts for 24% of the region's GDP.
It also contributes, more than any other sector, to global income growth in rural areas; it stimulates growth in other sectors of the economy (increasing demand for goods and services produced outside the sector), reduces overall levels of poverty, hunger and malnutrition.
Agriculture and agribusiness are two of the most promising sectors for the development of the African continent.
Biomedical
Health is a primary good for any country, but it is also a powerful driving force of economic well-being since, in order to function, a health system needs health personnel and industry that produces the medical technologies necessary for prevention, diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation.
The medical device sector can contribute significantly to this change of pace in African countries, creating the conditions for development of not only economic but also social value.
Textile and fashion
Creativity in the textile sector of a large part of the African continent goes hand in hand with the production of raw materials, from cotton to vegetable fibers to semi-finished leather. Out of 54 nations on the continent, 38 are producers of high-quality cotton.
A sector, that of fashion, which is already exploding in Africa: the international fashion weeks in Nigeria, Ghana and South Africa attract, every year, a vast audience of high economic importance and not just African.
In this context, “Made in Italy”, which alone represents a quality brand recognized throughout the world, can play a strategic role both in sourcing ideas and raw materials and in transferring skills and creating new growth opportunities in Africa.
Tourism and security
Safaris and tourist villages, backpack-in-shoulder climbing and trips, modern towns full of clubs and with rich nightlife, forums and high-level cultural events, today Africa has partly stripped itself of that romantic and stereotypical veneer of yellow and sandy streets, drums and big game hunting.
The complexity, diversity and poignant beauty of so many areas of the continent makes Africa a perfect place to create economy via tourism.
There are many Italian companies that, in this sector, have carved out a space of quality and important economy in the country in which they are established.
Waste management
The major urbanization of several cities in Africa poses a major challenge, which is fundamental to the quality of life and environmental protection: urban waste management and water treatment.
Potential future African smart-cities, with a view to improving services and substantially reducing operating costs, have the need for more intelligent and efficient collection systems and disposal systems with low environmental impact and ample recycling capacity. T
he global technological revolution is transforming the way we think about waste management: Africa, in this, represents a great opportunity for experimentation, development and growth.