Session on Africa during the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2009

28 January - 1 February 2009. Davos, Switzerland. Under the overall theme “Shaping the Post-Crisis World.” Over 2,500 participants and 40 Heads of State and government are participating in the World Economic Forum meeting, where business, civil society and government leaders have gathered to share ideas on how to shape the post-crisis agenda, from economic reform to climate change.

Raila Amolo Odinga, Prime Minister of Kenya,

captured during the session 'The New US Administration:

Can It Meet the Expectations of the World?'

Although the continent is not insulated from the global financial crisis, African countries will perform “relatively better” than other regions of the world this year. This was the consensus among discussants at the session on Africa.

Other relevant sessions:
Fresh solutions to food security
Kofi Annan,William H. Gates III, Irene B. Rosenfeld, Michael Treschow, Abhisit Vejjajiva with Josette Sheeran (debate of 1 hour)

State of Africa
The governance landscape of Africa is in transition with important democratic elections taking place across the continent. What political and economic actions are required to shape the future of Africa in a challenging global economic environment? (debate of 1 hour 4 minutes)

• Kofi Annan, Secretary-General, United Nations (1997-2006); Member of the Foundation Board of the World Economic Forum; Co-Chair of the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2009
• Luisa Dias Diogo, Prime Minister of Mozambique
• Paul Kagame, President of RwandaKgalema Motlanthe, President of South Africa
• Raila Amolo Odinga, Prime Minister of Kenya
• Abdoulaye Wade, President of Senegal
• Chaired byNiall FitzGerald, Deputy Chairman, Thomson Reuters, United Kingdom; Member of the Foundation Board of the World Economic Forum

Debate on The girl effect on development with Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Melinda French Gates, Mari Pangestu, Mark G. Parker, Ann M. Veneman, Muhammad Yunnus with Helene D. Gayle. (1 hour 3 min)


The Next Digital Experience
Social networking applications and sophisticated mobile devices are combining elements of the real and virtual worlds, and delivering an augmented experience of reality. How is this digital experience changing consumers and communities? (debate of 1 hour 3 minutes)

• Hamid Akhavan, Chief Executive Officer, T-Mobile International, Germany
• Eric K. Clemons, Professor of Operations and Information Management,
• The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, USA
• Chad Hurley, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, YouTube, USA
• Craig Mundie, Chief Research and Strategy Officer, Microsoft Corporation, USA
• Shantanu Narayen, President and Chief Executive Officer, Adobe Systems, USA
• Mark Zuckerberg, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Facebook, USA

Other relevant sessions:
28.01.09 Update 2009: Africa
30.01.09 Mobile Revolutions in the Developing World
30.01.09 The Future of Development Assistance
30.01.09 From Adoption to Diffusion: Technology and Developing Economies