Digital Africa Business Days

Digital Africa Business Days is the largest digital business forum for sustainable trade and investment between the Netherlands and Africa.

15th and 16th of December
Worldwide
Start at:9:00 am CEST (The Hague)
Flagship Event
maloe.dereuver@nabc.nl
  • Description
  • Programme
  • Speakers
  • Practical information
  • Factsheet

  • Africa in 2020 is not the same as Africa 20 years ago. The continent’s private sector is more innovative and dynamic than ever before, with its youth better educated and highly ambitious to become members of the globalised world. However, to reach Africa’s potential, there is a need for Africa to become more resilient in food systems, healthcare, and value chains. Therefore, we invite you to the Digital Africa Business Days, taking place on the 15th and the 16th of December 2020. Through the state-of-the-art online platform, the Digital Africa Business Days offer the attendees the opportunity to request and host B2B networking meetings, participate in insightful workshops, follow live talk show with key thought-leaders from Europe and Africa, visit virtual exhibition, and partake in high-level round tables. The Digital Africa Business Days will also host the Doing Business in Africa Award ceremony.

    The theme of the Digital Africa Business Days is “Moving Forwards Together” and aimed at cocreating solutions to Africa’s challenges in food, water, energy, health, and circular economy during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.

    The Digital Africa Business Days are co-organised by the NABC, the Dutch Government and the members of the ‘Africa Coalition:’ VNO-NCW/MKB Nederland, FMO, NLinBusiness, DECP and PUM. This activity falls under the overarching Dutch campaign “Moving Forwards Together”, aimed at countering the effects the COVID-19 crisis has had on international enterprises. Moving Forwards Together connects to the vision of cocreating innovative solutions to African challenges.

  • Day 1 of the Digital Africa Business Days will host a live talk show with international thought leaders and changemakers in the five focus sectors (agriculture, healthcare, energy, water, and circular economy) as well as in-depth workshops with business insights and discussions around concrete challenges and opportunities.

    09:00 – 11:00 Live show. Tune in for our two-hour opening ceremony. We will have the official opening remarks by a high-level official of the government of the Netherlands, followed by an opening speech by a high-profile speaker from one of the African focus countries. Insightful speakers will then shine their light on the question: how do the Netherlands and Africa move forwards together?

    10:00 – 11:00 Workshop. West Africa: business perspectives in a challenging region. In cooperation with DECP. This session will take place in French, with translation to English.

    10:00 – 11:00 Workshop: Health Holland meet-up East Africa: Opportunities & Challenges for doing Business & Projects. In cooperation with Taskforce Healthcare.

    10:00 – 11:00 Workshop: Emerging opportunities in food and beverage manufacturing industries in Ghana.

    10:00 – 11:00 Workshop: Nature-based solutions for Coastal Protection. In cooperation with IUCN.

    10:00 – 11:00 Workshop: Location Senegal: THE next hotspot for African agri-business? In cooperation with Sense.

    11:00 – 12:00 Workshop: Developments in Morocco: Water & Sustainable Energy – Hydrogen. In cooperation with RVO.

    11:00 – 12:00 Workshop: Opportunities for Dutch businesses in Ghana, Nigeria & South Africa in waste and circular economy. In cooperation with RVO.

    11:00 – 12:00 Workshop: Doing Business in Angola. In cooperation with RVO.

    11:00 – 12:00 Workshop: Strengthening the onion value chain in Senegal. In cooperation with PUM.

    11:00 – 12:00 Workshop: Doing Business in DRC: What you need to know. In cooperation with ANPIPA.

    12:00 – 13:00 Lunch & Networking

    13:00 – 14:00 Workshop: Dealing with salination in Agriculture: Challenges and Opportunities. In cooperation with LNV/Land, Water & Food Consult.

    13:00 – 14:00 Workshop: Insects as business for food and feed. In cooperation with TNO.

    13:00 – 14:00 Roundtable: Invest in South Africa! (Investment-ready projects presented by Investment Envoy). In cooperation with RVO (Closed session).

    13:00 – 14:00 Workshop: Scaling SMEs and start-ups: examples from Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso. In cooperation with IMPACT HUB Bamako.

    13:00 – 14:00 Workshop: Opportunities to strengthen the horticultural sector in Benin. In cooperation with EKN Cotonou & RVO.

    14:00 – 15:00 Workshop: Access to Finance (NL companies). In cooperation with RVO

    14:00 – 15:00 Workshop: The Future of Work: Circular labour migration. In cooperation with IOM.

    14:00 – 15:00 Workshop: Circular and sustainable building materials for and from Africa. In cooperation with TNO.

    14:00 – 15:00 Workshop: Building water sector expertise to address the Sustainable Development Goals. In cooperation with NWP.

    14:00 – 15:00 Workshop: Female Entrepreneurship: How to boost your business.

    15:00 – 16:00 LIVE interviews/talk show with special guests.

    16:00 – 16:30 Closing remarks  & announcement DBA Award.

    Day 2 Will focus on round tables with pre-selected stakeholders focusing on doing business, forming partnerships, and connecting African challenges to innovative solutions. There will also be an opportunity to network with the representatives of Dutch Embassies in Africa, and African Embassies accredited to the Benelux.

    09:00 – 10:00 Round Table: 15 Consortia for 15 Countries (Webinar). (NABC Members Only).

    10:00 – 11:00 Round Table: Kisumu Blue Flagship. In cooperation with Acacia Water. (closed session).

    10:00 – 11:00 Round Table 3: Poultry Ghana (closed session).

    10:00 – 12:00 Meet the African Ambassadors in the Benelux (NABC Members only).

    11:00 – 12:00 Round Table: Tackling salination: On the importance of international partnerships. In cooperation with RVO/Agricultural attaché EKN Egypt (closed session).

    11:00 – 12:00 Round Table: Flying food next steps. In cooperation with TNO (closed session).

    12:00 – 13:00 Lunch & Networking

    13:00 – 14:00 Round Table: Insects for feed in Nigeria (closed session).

    13:00 – 15:00 Meet Dutch Ambassadors in Africa

    14:00 – 15:00 Round Table: Africa Coalition. In cooperation with VNO-NCW (closed session).

    15:00 – 16:00 Round Table: Poultry Sector Development in Côte d’Ivoire (closed session).

    16:00 – 17:00 Networking

    All times are in CET.

  •                               

                 Lara van Druten                                    Simon N. Groot                                        Joost Oorthuizen

       CEO, Waste Transformers B.V.                  Founder, East-West Seed              .            Designated CEO, Invest International (in oprichting)

                                  

                  Kwasi Boahene                                    Nicholas Norbrook                                 Betina Gbadago

    Director West Africa, PharmAccess        Managing Editor, The Africa Report         Managing Director, Portside Togo

                               

      Mamadou Toure                                          Sabine Stuiver                                        Paul de Krom

    CEO, Ubuntu Group.                    CMO & Co-founder, Hydraloop Systems BV                CEO, TNO

                                

     Tommie Hooft van Huysduynen                       Audrey Ngako                                      Vanessa Moungar

            Co-Founder, ProTeen                           Founder & GM, OMENKART        Director for Gender, Women and Civil Society, ADBG

    Peter-Bart Lichtenbeld

    Sales Director Africa, Vencomatic Group

                                                         

     

     

     

  • Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and recommended security measures, NABC has merged three of its annual business events – Africa Works!, the Francophone Africa Business Forum (FAB Forum), and the Ambassadors’ Dinner – into one large-scale virtual event this year: the Digital Africa Business Days.

    All text on the platform and Live show will be available in English and French. Similarly, sessions for FAB Forum are available in both languages, whereas AfricaWorks! sessions will only be available in English. 

    Doing Business in Africa Award Ceremony

    Annually, during the Ambassadors’ Dinner, the NABC is proud to present one of its member companies with the Doing Business in Africa (DBA) Award. This year will be of no exception and one NABC member will be announced as the winner of the DBA Award on the 15th of December.

    The Doing Business in Africa Award is awarded on the basis of the following three pillars:

    • Innovation: The company offers a service or a product that applies new methods, ideas, or delivery procedures. The service or the product delivers recognisable results and has a positive impact on the business itself and those it serves.
    • Sustainability: The business model and the processes of delivering a service or a product (supply chain) have been developed to minimise negative impact on the ecological balance. The service or the product adds value locally in Africa and has a clear link to the SDGs. 
    • Inclusion: The company is working in and with Africa. The beneficiaries are included in the company’s core business as suppliers, distributors, retailers or customers.

    This year we had 14 DBA Award-worthy nominees, those are:

    The first round of voting has been closed and the top three candidates going to the Doing Business in Africa Award ceremony at the Digital Africa Business Days are as follows:

    Register now for a chance to decide who will be the next Doing Business in Africa Award winner.

     

  • On the 16th of December, day 2 of the Digital Africa Business Days, NABC will organize a virtual matchmaking event where the Dutch private sector can request meetings with the representatives of the African Embassies accredited to the Benelux and Dutch Embassies in Africa. Each virtual meeting will last 15 min max, and will take place via the Digital Africa Business Days platform.

    Meet the African Ambassador, 16 December, 10:00 – 12:00 CET (NABC Members priority).

    The following African Embassies have confirmed their presence:

    • Honorary Consulate of the Republic of Benin
    • Embassy of the Republic of Cameroon in the Netherlands
    • Embassy of the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire in the Netherlands
    • Embassy of the Arab Republic of Egypt in the Netherlands
    • Embassy of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia in the Netherlands
    • Embassy of the Republic of Kenya in the Netherlands
    • Embassy of the Republic of Madagascar in the Benelux
    • Embassy of the Kingdom of Morocco in the Netherlands
    • Embassy of the Republic of Mozambique in the Benelux
    • Embassy of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in the Netherlands
    • Embassy of the Republic of Rwanda in the Netherlands
    • Embassy of the United Republic of Tanzania in the Netherlands
    • Embassy of the Republic of South Africa in the Netherlands
    • Embassy of the Republic of Uganda in the Benelux
    • Embassy of the Republic of Zambia in the Benelux

    Request a meeting with the African Embassy of your choice before 8 December 2020, 17.00 CET by completing this form: https://forms.gle/A288FYK2JFcWqhry6

    Meet the Dutch Ambassador, 16 December, 13:00 – 15:00 CET.

    The following Dutch Ambassadors based in African countries will be present:

    • Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Algeria
    • Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Benin (representing Benin, Cameroon, Gabon and Equatorial Guinea)
    • Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Côte d’Ivoire
    • Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the Democratic Republic of Congo (representing the Democratic Republic of Congo and Republic of Congo)
    • Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Egypt
    • Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Ethiopia (representing Ethiopia and Djibouti)
    • Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Ghana (representing Ghana, Togo, Sierra Leone and Liberia)
    • Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Kenya (representing Kenya, Somalia and the Seychelles)
    • Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Morocco
    • Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Mozambique
    • Dutch Consulate General in Nigeria, Lagos
    • Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Rwanda
    • Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Senegal (representing Senegal, Cape Verde, Mauritania, The Gambia and Guinee)
    • Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in South Africa (representing South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Lesotho, La Reunion and eSwatini)
    • Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Sudan
    • Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Tanzania (representing Madagascar, Mauritius and Comoros)
    • Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Uganda (representing Uganda, Eritrea, Chad and the Central African Republic)

    Request a meeting with the Dutch Embassy of your choice before 8 December 2020, 17.00 CET by completing this form: https://forms.gle/XbA8JEKzb2SWnJSG7

    For questions, please contact Ms. Myrthe van der Gaast