Manama, Bahrain - Under the high patronage of H.H. Shaikh Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa, Prime Minister of Kingdom of Bahrain. The Crans Montana Forum Middle East (CMF - ME) announced that H.E. Maria Da Luz Dai Guebuza, the First Lady of Mozanbique, will be attending the upcoming Forum "Strengthening the GCC-Africa Cooperation" with an accompanying delegation, thereby marking her first official visit to the Kingdom of Bahrain.
This high profile economic and investment forum organised by Crans Montana Forum Middle East, in association with OFID - OPEC Fund for International Development, will be held 1-3 December, 2008 at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel and Spa, Manama, Kingdom of Bahrain.
It is the first event of its kind to connect GCC countries with the African nations, representing a new era of South-South cooperation in today's rapidly globalizing world.
The forum will provide a first-hand account of Africa's investment climate from a policy and regulatory environment perspective as well as enabling national, State, and Regional Governments, and the private sector, to showcase the clusters and projects that seek investments.
Other confirmed attendees from the African continent include H.E. Prime Minister Odinga of Kenya, the Prime Minister of Djbouti, H.E. Dileita Mohamed Dileita, H.E. Hadjia Laraba Tandja, the First Lady of Niger several African Ministers and Secretary Generals of regional African organisations, as well as many other high-profile governmental and corporate personalities. A number of high-profile African delegations are in the process of confirming their participation in this important Forum, in addition to several key business personalities from Bahrain's private sector and many senior-level governmental and corporate representatives from Saudi Arabia, and the GCC.
The Forum is targeting: Policy makers and Officials from Governments and Para-governmental institutions, Parliaments, Chambers of Commerce, Businesses, Business associations, Foreign Chambers and Business Councils in the GCC Region, Africa, top executives from National Funds, Foreign Investment Funds, Investment and Financial Institutions, Banks including Islamic Banks, Institutional Investors, Corporate, traders, developers, and high net-worth individuals, Businesses targeted carefully according to the sectors of interest, International, Regional and Specialized Organizations, Chiefs of Missions and Diplomats.
The Forum's Programme headlines include: "The Role of International Organisations: World Bank, IFC, International Monetary Fund, UNIDO, African Development Bank, Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa, United Nations Environment Programme, UNECA, OFID", "The role of the Sovereign Funds in the International Cooperation Strategies", "The new role of Islamic Banking", "Assisting African countries to develop market-oriented trade networks", "Developing Technology transfers and Business knowledge", "Implementing Trade agreements between GCC States and African Countries", and "Arab Foreign Direct Investment to Africa".
Concrete African investment opportunities (by sector and Country) will also be presented at the Forum, including: Natural Resources, Mining, Oil and Gas, Energy, Renewable Energy, Transport, Industrial and Economic Infrastructure, Financial Services, Banking, Trade, Housing, Telecommunication, IT, Tourism, Manufacturing Industry, Privatization, Public Health and related activities.
Furthermore the Forum will include a special one-day session entitled "The role of Sovereign Funds in Foreign Investment and Economic Development in Africa". This smaller "Forum within the Forum" will allow major International Organizations, Multilateral Institutions, Funds, Multinational Corporations, Government bodies and experts to offer new insights into the evolving responses to the rise of Sovereign Funds. This will include their strategies, their significant impact on development in Africa--particularly their contribution to infrastructure development in Africa and their potential contribution to funding R&D in key high-technology sectors of the 21st Century--and ultimately, how they will help shape a multi-polar world.
Since 1989, the Crans Montana Forum has been devoted to the Economic development and the World Integration of Africa through Economic Growth, Trade Capacity Building, Natural Resources management and Infrastructure Development. The Forum's Programme and List of Participants are updated daily on www.cmf.ch
- Ends -
For more information, please contact:
Tel: +973 36688810 / +973 17226775
Website: www.cmf.ch and www.cmfme.org
Press Release 2008
