The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region will have to create hundreds of millions of new jobs over the next three decades. This challenge presents an opportunity for the region to transform its economies and harness both the creativity of its large youth population and the disruptive power of technology as engines of growth.
The World Bank Group in partnership with the government of Algeria and the Arab Monetary Fund, will bring together policymakers, entrepreneurs and academics from the region and beyond for a series of far reaching discussions on what it will take for MENA to seize this opportunity.
The Youth, Technology and Finance conference will focus on the building blocks of a new economy. This will include discussions on the role education systems play in changing attitudes toward and encouraging innovation. The region has a fast-growing population of university graduates, and widespread adoption of smart phones and social media, but few combine their skills with technology to become entrepreneurs.
The e-commerce site, Souq.com and the ride-hailing app Careem are powerful examples of what is possible, and the conference will host discussions on the environment needed to multiply these green shoots. There will be sessions on creating education systems that equip young people with 21 st century skills, and crafting smart regulations that promote innovation as a driver of private sector development and job creation. Discussions will also focus on the lessons learned in
establishing the necessary technical infrastructure, such as accessible and affordable high-speed internet and digital payment systems.
The new economy will be driven by technological innovation, which has broadened the reach and lowered the cost of training, revolutionized job matching and lowered the cost of incubating start-ups.
A number of the region’s most successful ‘unicorns’ will also be featured at the conference, with their stories of how they leveraged disruptive technologies to launch businesses and grow offering a glimpse of a potential future for the region.
For more information on the conference please contact newarabeconomy@worldbank.org
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Last Updated: Mar 18, 2018
Day 1 — Monday, March 26, 2018
8:00 AM | Breakfast and Registration |
| 8:30 AM | OPENING SESSION Ahmed Ouyahia, Prime Minister, People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria Jim Yong Kim, President, World Bank Group (by video) |
| 9:00 AM | PANEL SESSION 1. START-UPS AND UNICORNS Moderator: Rebeen Pasha, Founder of MyeDream Incubator, Iraq, and StartUP MIddle East Keynote address: Mudassir Sheikha, CEO and Co-Founder, Careem Panelist: Ala' Alasallal, CEO, Jamalon |
| 11:00 AM | Coffee break |
| 11:30 AM | PANEL SESSION 2. DIGITAL JOB PLATFORMS Moderator: Parmesh Shah, Global Lead for Jobs, Agriculture Global Practice, World Bank Group Panelist: Waleid Asad, Executive Director of Enterprise, Silatech |
| 1:00 PM | Lunch |
| 2:00 PM | PANEL SESSION 3. REGULATION AS A CATALYST FOR INNOVATION Moderator: Faraoun Houda-Iman, Minister of Post, Information Technology & Communication, People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria Keynote address: Mr. R. S. Sharma, Chairman, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) Panelist: Marie Francoise Marie-Nelly, Country Director for the Maghreb Region, World Bank Group Panelist: Noureddine Tayebi, Founder and CEO, InSense Inc. and Founder and Chairman of the Board of VA Technologies, Algiers |
| 4:00 PM | Coffee break |
| 4:30 PM | PANEL SESSION 4. FINANCE AND DEVELOPMENT Moderator: Abderrahmane Raouya, Minister of Finance, People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria Keynote address: Lemma Senbet, Executive Director, African Economic Research Consortium and University of Maryland Panelist: Ragavan Venkatesan, Head, Digital Payments & Alternate Channels, IDFC Bank |
7:30 PM
| Gala Dinner |
Day 2 — Tuesday, March 27, 2018
| 8:30 AM | Breakfast |
| 9:00 AMPANEL SESSION | PANEL SESSION 5. EDUCATION, SCIENCE AND INNOVATION Moderator: Nouria Benghabrit, Minister of National Education, People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria Keynote address: Hayat Sindi, Special Advisor to the Islamic Development Bank’s President, IsDB Panelist: Nadir Mohammed, GCC Country Director, World Bank Group Panelist: Salvatore Nigro, Global Vice President, Education for Employment. Panelist: Kamran Elahian, Founder and Chairman, Global Innovation Catalyst Panelist: Lesly Goh, Director, Information and Technology Solutions Vice Presidency, World Bank Group Panelist: Mussaad Al-Razouki, Chief Business Development Officer, Kuwait Life Sciences |
| 10:30 AM | Coffee break |
| 11:00 AM | PANEL SESSION 6. DIGITAL AGRICULTURE Moderator: Parmesh Shah, Global lead on jobs, World Bank Group Panelist: Castro Antwi-Danso, Director of Sales and Marketing, Esoko |
| 1:00 PM | Lunch |
| 2:00 PM | MINISTERS CLOSING ROUNDTABLE Abderrahmane Raouyao, Minister of Finance, People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria Hafez Ghanem, Vice President, Middle East and North Africa, The World Bank Group Abdulrahman A. Al Hamidy, Director General Chairman of the Board, Arab Monetary |
| 3:30 PM | CLOSING REMARKS AND NEXT STEPS |
| 3:30 PM | Press Conference Abderrahmane Raouya, Minister of Finance, People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria Hafez Ghanem, Vice President, Middle East and North Africa, The World Bank Group Abdulrahman A. Al Hamidy, Director General Chairman of the Board, Arab Monetary Fund |
Last Updated: Mar 25, 2018
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