The Oxford Business Group (OBG) is organising an African Investment and Business forum from 3rd to 5th December at the Accra International Conference Centre.

The global publishing firm, OBG will be a key partner at the Forum, which will bring together more than 2000 industry and public sector representatives from across the continent, including a number of government leaders.

A statement issued on Wednesday and copied to Ghana News Agency said, Algeria’s bid to foster new commercial links across West Africa and take advantage of the opportunities emerging in key markets, including Ghana, is expected to be a topic for discussion at a transcontinental forum to be held in Algiers at the beginning of December.

Ali Haddad, the President of the Forum of Business Leaders, Algeria, will be among the speakers at the conference. Brahim Benabdeslem, Vice-President of the FCE, said the forum would provide an important platform for collective sharing and co-development.

“Algeria wishes to play a central role in building adhesion among countries across the continent and will strive to push the African continent toward being a global economic powerhouse,” he said.

Algeria has already begun the process of diversifying its economy and moving up the value chain, in a bid to reduce the country’s financial dependence on oil and gas. The country has also managed to counter a drop in revenues by rationalising its fiscal and monetary policies, while maintaining its plans for investing in both infrastructure, and social and human development.

The country’s long-term strategy for broadening the economic base includes driving up investment from countries throughout sub-Saharan Africa and building on trade partnerships. Africa’s future will be, in part, determined by the pace of economic and social development within each individual country.

The African Investments and Business Forum will provide business and also a platform for participants to discuss the African Union’s strategies for boosting intra-African trade. The conference will focus on the five areas that have been identified as pivotal for producing a lasting collective dynamic, namely: agriculture; energy; finance; digital development; and human capital.

“These are the key elements that will shape the programme of this event and drive the new inter-African dynamic, as well as an economic vision that is balanced, coherent and inclusive,” Toufik Lerari, president of Jil'FCE, said. With a focus on seeking out African solutions to African problems, the Algiers event is a significant step towards collective autonomy. It will provide business leaders keen to contribute to the continent’s economic development with the means to learn more about the opportunities available to them.

Many of the themes explored at the forum will be analysed in detail in The Report: Algeria 2016, OBG’s forthcoming report on the country. OBG’s publication will highlight the need to pivot towards Sub-Saharan Africa.

It will also chart the diversification of the Algerian economy; the shift towards the development of industry and value-added activities; agriculture’s key role; and the growing emphasis on exports, including the recognition of Algerian products abroad.

The publication will be a vital guide to the many facets of the country, including its macroeconomics, infrastructure, banking and other sectoral developments.