Project Africa House: Wakanda May be Fictional but this African-Led Initiative is 100% Real
The truth is even more inspirational than fiction.
GENEVA, Nov. 9, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- In January 2023, high in the scenic Swiss Alps, a group of young African visionaries, led by Kojo Annan, the son of the late Former-U.N. Secretary General, Kofi Annan, will gather to pave the way for the continent's continued growth. At the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting in Davos, over 2,500 participants, including numerous world leaders, will convene to tackle pressing global issues. This time, Africa will be taking a front seat at the talks.
As Kojo Annan, Co-founder of Africa House passionately explains, "For too long, the narrative about Africa has been overshadowed by war, famine, natural disasters, and instability. Africa House is committed to changing that story by showcasing our continent's wealth of opportunities, talent, innovation, and vibrancy."
Africa 4.0
In 2016, Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairperson of the World Economic Forum (WEF), coined the term "the Fourth Industrial Revolution" (4IR). Whereas the first industrial revolution focused on water and steam power, the second on electric power, and the third brought about the digital revolution, the fourth is a fusion of what has gone before, "blurring the lines between the physical, digital, and biological spheres."
The continent of Africa is known for its wealth of resources and with the explosion of startups on the continent, over 650 in total in 2022 alone, these resources clearly include the ingenuity of its people. Africans are entrepreneurs and major contenders in the technology ecosystem with digital automation facilitating the flow of free trade across the continent. According to a recent report published by WEF and Deloitte, the reduction of non-tariff barriers could lead to trade gains in Africa of $20 billion a year.
In a 2019 article entitled "From Wakanda to Reality," Thunderbird School of Global Management in Washington DC Executive Director and Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution Professor Landry Signé and US Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield shared a way forward transforming African countries into the fictional powerhouse nation of Wakanda.
According to Professor Signé, who is also Co-founder and Executive Chairperson at Africa House, "A resource-rich continent, brimming with enterprising innovators leapfrogging their way towards a new era is exactly where we're at today. People of African descent and those of us living on the continent need to harness our collective energy and enthusiasm in order to reach new heights the world hasn't seen before."
Africa House aims to be more than just a meeting place; the vision of the organization is to become a global movement that celebrates the multifaceted brilliance the 54 countries of Africa have to offer.
The glorious depiction of Wakanda in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is breathtaking. In 2016, the first installment of the franchise provided the world with a fresh and inspiring image of the African continent in the form of an Afro-futuristic fantasy. Today, the team at Africa House is determined to move closer to making that fantasy a reality.
About Africa House
Africa House is a platform to spearhead Africa's rising by bringing the best and brightest entrepreneurs, initiatives, and opportunities to leaders across industry and government attending Davos. Africa House is powered by The Giving Back Fund as a non-profit project and supported by a team of experts that bring together a combined 30+ years of experience on the continent and leading African initiatives.
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SOURCE Project Africa House
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