Engaging the Private Sector to Improve Local Health Service Delivery in a Pandemic

On Wednesday, September 29th, Corporate Council on Africa (CCA) held the “African Development Bank Private Sector Dialogue”. The event was the final special session of CCA’s UNGA 2021 Special Sessions. The Roundtable served as an opportunity to discuss opportunities and challenges in private sector engagement on the continent and featured African Development Bank (AfDB) President, Dr. Akinwumi A. Adesina.Florie Liser, President and CEO of the Corporate Council on Africa, delivered the opening remarks, emphasizing the UNGA themes of economic recovery from the pandemic and the urgency of collective action, particularly related to redoubling our efforts towards combatting climate change. She noted the need for close collaborate between the private and public sector and between African and non-African shareholders.Dr. Mima Nedelcovych, Chairman of AfricaGlobal Schaffer introduced Dr. Adesina calling him a “champion” and the “voice of new Africa.” He stressed the common business interests between the African continent and the United States.In his opening remarks, Dr. Adesina noted that the CCA stands for “not just the Corporate Council on Africa, but the Corporate Council with Africa”. He emphasized the need for the AfDB and CCA to work collaboratively on deals, ensure the mitigation of risk, and work with governments to improve the legal environment for investment. A key component of his remarks included the need to make movement across borders easier and develop infrastructure to facilitate greater movement.“Infrastructure is the heart of investment” Dr. Adesina said, stressing the importance of ease in the flowing of goods, services, and people.He spoke of the opportunities for investment on the continent, citing that food and agriculture would be worth $1 trillion by 2030 and touching base on the rapid digitization on the continent. With an expected over 600 million smartphone users across Africa by 2025, digital infrastructure is paramount. Despite the global recession and disruption in African markets because of COVID-19, Dr. Adesina referenced that the financial technology (fintech) sector actually grew during the pandemic.The dialogue featured members from CCA both digitally and in person. Attendees included Lockheed Martin International, GE, CCA Board Member Witney Schneidman of Covington & Burling LLP, Citi, AfricaGlobal Schaffer, Axxess, Development Finance International, Abbott, Manchester Trade, and more.Topics addressed in the question-and-answer section included the need for interoperable payment systems across the continent, the importance of land reform for land tenure, and the importance of comparative advantage to ensure the pursuance of value-added production with commodities, rather than solely exporting raw goods.In her closing remarks, President and CEO Liser expressed CCA’s continued mandate to support the economic development of African nations by continuing to provide a platform for discussions on U.S.- Africa collaboration for economic growth.The CCA UNGA Special Sessions were generously sponsored by AfricaGlobal Schaffer; Axxess; the Bizzell Group; Flutterwave; Google; Jean Boulle Group; and Lockheed Martin International.