Global leaders set to attend Brand Africa Forum 2011

The second annual Brand Africa Forum, hosted by the International Marketing Council of South Africa (the custodians of Brand South Africa) and Brand Leadership Academy, will take place on Thursday, 29 September 2011 at the Sandton Convention Centre, Johannesburg, South Africa. The one-day platform will tackle key issues affecting Africa's growth, reputation and competitiveness.

During the forum, global thought leaders, influencers and decision-makers will interact, share insights and proactively drive the agenda for issues, ideas and opportunities that are a catalyst for Africa's growth, reputation and competitiveness.

This is an opportunity for pan-African decision makers in media, business, nation branding and civil society to interact and engage in topics and opportunities that are key for the future of Africa as well as to learn lessons from emerging markets.

Global leaders

Attending global leaders will include:

Dr. Vijay Mahajan, author of Africa Rising
Dr. Dambisa Moyo, global economist and author of Why The West Was Lost
Dr. Reuel Khoza, chairman of Nedbank Group
Ajai Chowdhry, chairman of HCL Info Systems (India)
Tawana Nyambirai, chairman of Econet & TN Group (Zimbabwe)
Hon. Hanna Tetteh, Minister of Trade and Industry (Ghana)
Anitha Soni, chairman of the International Marketing Council of South Africa
David Haigh, CEO of Brand Finance, plc. (UK)
Keith Dinnie, author of Nation Branding
Prof Nick Binedell, founding Director of GIBS
Rakesh Wahi, vice chairman and co-founder of CNBC Africa
Nigel Hollis, author of The Global Brand

Tumi Makgabo will facilitate the programme which will kick off with an opening address from Anitha Soni. Keynote addresses will anchor each of the four panels which will focus on governance and sustainability and how to enable policies that will foster growth and development; the role of business in shaping our economic future; youth and their vision for Africa; and the significance of BRICS and lessons for South Africa and Africa.

The forum will focus on key questions such as:

How can South Africa leverage its membership to BRICS to raise Africa's voice and influence African economic investment and growth beyond 7%?
What market-driven interventions and policies can African nations learn from other BRICS nations to transform Africa's economy?
How can savvy global African businesses and brands inspire and empower other African brands to grow beyond financial services, FMCG and telecommunications?
Are many African businesses looking to African expansion ahead of global development? If so, what are the implications of looking inward rather than internationally?
What type of leadership is required to build an enabling environment and systems to inspire growth, investment and innovation in Africa?

For more information, go to www.brandafrica.net/BrandAfricaForum.aspx