Africa Economic Symposium (AES) – 3rd Edition: Bold Moves amid Global Shifts

Monday, July 14th, 2025

14h00 – 14h30

Registration & Welcome Coffee

14h30 – 14h45

AES Mobile Application Presentation

14h45 – 15h00

Introductory Remarks

15h00 – 15h15

Keynote Address

1. Macroeconomic Policy Challenges in Africa

15h15 – 16h30

Session 1: Monetary Policy Decisions in Times of Uncertainty

African central banks face tough choices as receding inflation in some countries prompts debate over when to ease policy rates, while persistent inflation and its social consequences complicate the picture. Most countries have kept rates tight or unchanged in 2024; a few have cautiously begun easing. These decisions unfold amid a volatile global trade environment, where fragmentation and shifting supply chains drive further uncertainty for inflation, currencies, and external financing. High public debt, limited reserves, and weak policy transmission add to vulnerabilities, while social pressures mount from elevated living costs.

Navigating these challenges demands careful balancing: supporting growth, anchoring expectations, and preserving credibility—even as political pressures and global shocks test resilience. Improving monetary-fiscal coordination and investing in financial innovation are essential for building resilience, advancing financial inclusion, and responding effectively to both domestic and external shocks.

· How should central banks time policy rate reductions given persistent inflation, social pressures, and uncertain global trade conditions?

· What innovative monetary policy tools and frameworks are best suited for African economies facing persistent external shocks?

· How can monetary and fiscal coordination address debt pressures while safeguarding central bank independence?

16h30 – 16h45

Coffee Break

16h45 – 18h00

Parallel Session 2: Fiscal Policy Challenges – Strengthening Public Finances Amid Growing Development needs

The tension between limited fiscal resources and expanding development imperatives creates complex policy dilemmas for policymakers. Persistent fiscal deficits reflect structural constraints in revenue mobilization alongside growing demands for infrastructure, social services, and climate adaptation investments. This fiscal squeeze threatens to undermine progress toward economic transformation and sustainable development goals. Revenue challenges extend beyond narrow tax bases to questions of optimal tax structure, administrative capacity, and the appropriate balance between revenue generation and maintaining a growth-friendly environment. On the expenditure side, countries confront difficult trade-offs in allocating scarce resources among competing priorities while addressing efficiency gaps in public investment and service delivery.

The management of natural resource wealth, particularly critical minerals, presents both opportunities and governance challenges in expanding fiscal space. Meanwhile, the design of institutional frameworks—including fiscal rules, transparency mechanisms,

and public financial management systems—raises fundamental questions about how to enhance credibility while maintaining flexibility to respond to shocks.

· How can African countries strengthen revenue mobilization through both tax and non-tax measures without undermining growth or increasing inequality?

· What strategies can improve the efficiency and impact of public expenditure while protecting essential social spending during fiscal consolidation?

· How can institutional reforms, fiscal rules, and transparency measures enhance fiscal governance and create confidence in public financial management?

· What role can critical minerals and natural resource governance play in expanding fiscal space for development needs?

Parallel Session 3: Fiscal Policy Challenges – Debt Sustainability and Financing Solutions

Rising public debt and increasing debt service burdens are constraining fiscal space across African economies, limiting resources for development priorities. Shifts toward commercial, shorter-term, and higher-cost borrowing raise vulnerabilities to external shocks and refinancing risks, while limited capital market access and declining credit ratings add further pressures.

Efforts to resolve debt distress—such as through multilateral initiatives like the Common Framework—face persistent gaps between design and practical implementation, with creditor coordination and transparency challenges leading to drawn-out restructuring processes. Questions remain about the adequacy of international financial architecture in meeting Africa's unique needs. Standard approaches to debt sustainability analysis are under scrutiny, as development objectives, climate vulnerabilities, and productive investment potential increasingly demand consideration. Meanwhile, new sovereign debt instruments—such as sustainability-linked and state-contingent bonds—are emerging, but their effectiveness in supporting fiscal resilience remains uncertain.

· How does Africa’s evolving debt composition impact vulnerability to shocks and refinancing risks?

· What implementation gaps in debt resolution frameworks matter most for African economies?

· In what ways should debt sustainability analysis adapt to reflect development and climate realities?

· What is the potential for innovative financing instruments to address fiscal and debt sustainability challenges?

Tuesday, July 15th, 2025

2. Driving Africa’s Economic Transformation: Solutions for Trade, Connectivity and Finance

09h00 – 09h30

Welcome Coffee

09h30 – 10h45

Session 4: AfCFTA at Crossroads: Integration in an Age of Fragmentation

The promise of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) lies in fostering deeper integration, raising productivity, and supporting economic transformation across the continent. Yet while aspirations for a unified market remain high, efforts to reduce fragmentation face persistent challenges, including high non-tariff barriers, infrastructure bottlenecks, limited capacity for effective implementation, and overlapping regional agreements. Past regional initiatives highlight that lowering non-tariff trade costs—through smoother customs procedures, improved logistics, and regulatory alignment—is essential to unlock real development gains. Strong institutions, effective coordination, and political will are crucial for reducing fragmentation and building economic resilience. At the same time, equitable adjustment measures are needed to ensure all member states, including smaller and less diversified economies, benefit from integration.

With structural reforms, the AfCFTA can drive the development of regional value chains, support industrialization, and help Africa navigate changing global dynamics. However, translating this vision into reality will require overcoming long-standing barriers and making sustained implementation efforts.

· What lessons from past integration efforts are most relevant for addressing non-tariff barriers and trade-related costs under the AfCFTA?

· How can AfCFTA implementation foster greater participation in regional value chains, especially for smaller and less diversified economies?

· What institutional arrangements and governance mechanisms are needed to ensure effective and inclusive implementation?

· In a climate of global fragmentation, how can the AfCFTA strengthen Africa’s position and resilience in international trade?

10h45 – 11h00

Coffee Break

11h00 – 12h15

Session 5: Economic Corridors as Catalysts for Growth

Economic corridors represent a strategic approach to addressing Africa's persistent infrastructure deficits and high trade costs that constrain continental integration. By connecting regions through coordinated investment in transportation networks, trade facilitation, and regulatory harmonization, corridors can significantly reduce the costs of moving goods across borders—currently among the highest in the world. Africa's infrastructure gaps, particularly in road networks and ports, directly constrain trade competitiveness and limit participation in regional and global value chains. Successful corridors tackle both hard infrastructure needs and "soft" constraints like inefficient customs procedures, which together can impose trade costs equivalent to substantial tariffs.

Beyond physical connectivity, economic corridors create opportunities for strategic industrial development, enhanced productivity, and more inclusive growth patterns. However, realizing these benefits requires addressing implementation challenges, including coordination across multiple jurisdictions, sustainable financing models, and ensuring benefits extend beyond major economic hubs.

· What financing models can effectively mobilize the significant resources needed for economic corridor development?

· How can corridor governance frameworks balance national priorities with regional integration objectives?

· What complementary policies and interventions are needed to ensure economic corridors deliver inclusive benefits beyond their immediate geographic scope?

12h15 – 13h45

Lunch Break

13h45 – 15h00

Session 6: Central Bank Digital Currencies: Transforming Africa’s Financial Ecosystems

Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) represent a transformative opportunity to address persistent barriers in Africa’s financial systems—namely high transaction costs, fragmented payment networks, and limited financial inclusion. While Africa has pioneered mobile money, many communities remain underserved, and cross-border payments still face significant friction. Pilot projects in Africa are exploring how CBDCs can support more resilient domestic and regional payments, promote innovation, and ensure that digital financial benefits reach rural and informal sectors.

However, realizing these advantages demands more than new technology. Key challenges include ensuring interoperability, investing in digital infrastructure, and establishing trust through effective regulation and protection of user data. Regional cooperation and harmonized standards will also be essential for seamless cross-border usage.

· How can CBDCs be designed to advance financial inclusion, especially for Africa’s underserved populations?

· What measures are needed to ensure cybersecurity and public trust in CBDC platforms?

· How can CBDCs support affordable, efficient cross-border payments and regional integration?

· What approaches can mitigate risks of bank disintermediation and ensure a stable financial ecosystem?

15h00 – 16h15

Session 7: Beyond Aid: New Frontiers in Development Finance

Africa’s development financing is at a turning point as traditional aid, especially Official Development Assistance (ODA), declines due to shifting global priorities and changing donor strategies. Recent reductions, highlighted by major USAID cuts, have exposed the risks of aid dependency and underscored the urgent need for Africa to overhaul its development finance approach.

Achieving sustainable progress hinges on mobilizing domestic resources, reforming tax and revenue systems, curbing illicit financial flows, and making investment environments more attractive. Innovative financing—drawing on local capital markets, diaspora remittances, and robust public-private partnerships—must be scaled up, supported by stronger institutions and governance. Addressing inefficiencies and building capacity are essential to drive economic transformation. These new approaches must not leave behind the communities most affected by shrinking aid. Blending diverse financing sources with clear alignment to national priorities is central to achieving broad-based growth and resilience. Regional cooperation and decisive leadership are vital to driving reforms and building resilience.

· How can African countries leverage international aid’s decline to accelerate institutional reforms for domestic resource mobilization?

· What are the main obstacles to scaling up innovative financing instruments and how can they be effectively addressed?

· What institutional and policy reforms are needed to ensure new financing approaches promote inclusive growth and reach those most affected by traditional aid reductions?

· How can regional collaboration mitigate risks from fragmented global priorities and shrinking traditional aid?

16h15 – 16h30

Coffee Break

16h30 – 17h45

Session 8: Report Presentation – PCNS Annual Report on the African Economy

17h45 – 18h00

Closing Remarks