Date: 1 June 2022, 12:30-21:00 (CEST-1)
World Bank Headquarters (JDW Atrium & Preston Auditorium) – Country Offices in Africa – and livestreamed.
Join on Wednesday June 1, for the 2022 edition of the Africa Knowledge Fest, a showcase of the most notable analytical works done by World Bank staff on development issues in Africa. The event will be accompanied by simultaneous country office forums for exchange featuring prominent development thinkers as well as exhibits of recent knowledge works produced by the World Bank in the Africa region and by the Global Practices. A contest will be held to reward the most influential and impactful regional knowledge product produced over the past five years.
8:30 – 9:10: Registration and Breakfast
9:10 – 9:20: Welcome Remarks by Hafez Ghanem, Vice President, Eastern and Southern Africa, World Bank (in the Preston Auditorium and livestreamed)
9:20 – 11:00: Leveraging Knowledge in Times of Crisis (in the Preston Auditorium and livestreamed)
Keynote address by Mari Pangestu, Managing Director, Development Policy and Partnerships, World Bank
Indermit Gill, Vice President for Equitable Growth, Finance and Institutions, World Bank
Agnes Kalibata, agricultural scientist, policymaker and President of the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA)
Carmen Reinhardt, Senior Vice President and World Bank Group chief economist, Development Economics, World Bank (TBC)
James Robinson, economist and political scientist, University of Chicago
Prof. Leonard Wantchekon, Professor of Politics and International Affairs, Princeton University
Panel moderated by Albert Zeufack, Chief Economist, Africa, World Bank Group
11:00 – 14:00 Book fair with authors in the JDW Atrium; lunch; and entertainment by Akua Kouyate-Tate, Memory of African Culture Inc.
11:30 – 12:30 Centering African Knowledge: The African Development Forum Series in Perspective (in the JDW Atrium and livestreamed)
Gaelle Balineau, on Food Systems in Africa: Rethinking the Role of Markets (AFD, 2020)
Moussa Blimpo, on Electricity Access in Sub-Saharan Africa: Uptake, Reliability, and Complementary Factors for Economic Impact (WB, 2019)
Woubet Kassa, on Industrialization in Sub-Saharan Africa: Seizing Opportunities in Global Value Chains (WB, 2021)
Co-Moderated by Albert Zeufack and Thomas Mélonio, Executive Director of Innovation, Strategy, and Research, Agence Française de Développement (AFD). Discussant: Stefan Dercon, Professor of Economic Policy, Oxford University
14:00-15:00 Building Bridges between Knowledge and Policy: The Role of Chief Economic Advisors (in the Preston Auditorium and livestreamed)
A moderated conversation with current and former Chief Economic Advisors to African leaders: Bertand Belle (Seychelles); Nomusa T. Dlamini (Eswatini); Dr. Mohamed Doumbouya (Guinea); KY Amoako (Ghana); and Trudi Makhaya (South Africa) - TBC
15:15-14:00 Knowledge Impact Awards (in the Preston Auditorium and livestreamed)
Five-minute ignite talks by five finalists, voting by audience and award of prize
Chaired by Victoria Kwakwa, Strategic Corporate Initiatives, World Bank
16:00 - Closing Remarks by Ousmane Diagana, Vice President, Western and Central Africa, World Bank (in the Preston Auditorium and livestreamed)
16:10-17:00 Closing reception in the JDW Atrium
The event will be livestreamed here.