Events and Communication

These are core activities associated with organising events for projects, communication and disseminating reports. Since the launch of the African Transformation Report in October 2017, communications activities have focused on organizing mini-launch events. Two of such was organised in the United States of America. Across Africa, there were events in Ghana, Cote d'Ivoire, Ethiopia and Botswana. Communication and event activities were also undertaken towards and during the African Transformation Forum in June 2018. During 2018, ACET was tagged on Twitter in a call for applications for the prestigious Prospect Think Tank awards and awarded Best Global Economic Think Tank. We also experienced a significant increase in ACET mentions in both traditional and social media. During the first quarter of 2019, the team uploaded ACET’s 2016, 2017 and 2018 annual report on the website. Additionally, six (6) of our reports were uploaded or published together with the Brookings Institution’s Foresight Africa 2019 publication. By close of March 2019, ACET had been referenced twenty (18) times in publications by the African Perspective on Global Development and the Institute for Global Dialogue in association with UNISA to mention a few. We also received 11 media mentioning and 14 invitations to participate in non-ACET events in the capacity of speakers, panel moderators and participants. Our flagship report ATR2 (Overview, full report and French version) was downloaded 668 times during the same period. Overall, ACET recorded a total of 844 downloads for all our published papers and reports during the 1st quarter. Click here for the detailed 1st quarter report from the communications department. In Q2 of 2019, ACET published the ‘Future of Work in Africa: Implications for Secondary Education and TVET Systems’ report. The report explores the impact of changes brought on by the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) on secondary level education and Technical, Vocational education and Training systems. We also uploaded the ATF 2018 Full Report. We published several opinion pieces and blogs. The Director and Senior Advisor at ACET, Rob Floyd, published his piece ‘Quality Infrastructure in Africa: Japan and the CwA’, which discusses the Japanese presidency of the G20 and its implications on Africa, especially with regard to the Compact with Africa and the priority of quality infrastructure in Africa. We also published a blog written by Sanjeev Guptaand Mark Plant, titled “Enhancing domestic resource mobilisation: what are the real obstacles?’. The piece, which was originally published on the website of the Center for Global Development where Gupta is a Visiting Senior Fellow, summarised key issues emerging from a roundtable of finance ministers held during the week of the IMF/World Bank Spring meetings. ACET also co-curated content for the World Economic Forum’s African Transformation Maps, which is part of its Transformation Maps series. Media Monitoring ACET was mentioned eight times in two papers - the Business and Financial Times, and the Business Finder. ACET was also mentioned 116 times in online media, including AllAfrica.com, GhanaWeb, The Africa Report, Modern Ghana, Citi News, Myjoyonline.com and the reporter Ethiopia. Information gathered from our google alert revealed a fall in the total number of citations received from 18 in the 1st quarter to 13 this 2nd quarter. ACET procured a team to support the implementation of an ACET communications strategy We published 3 blogs during the 4th quarter of 2019: - The Imperative of Economic Transformation written by Rob Floyd. - The Challenges and Opportunities for Smallholder Voices by Adiel Mbabu - Why industrialisation is vital for the African Continental Free Trade Agreement to succeed by Dr. Arkebe Oqubay In December, we supported the Legatum Institute, an American Think Tank, to launch their Global Economic Openness Index- Ghana Report, a report developed from their Global Economic Openness Index. ACET’s website recorded an increase in users from 15K in the second quarter to 20K in the fourth quarter resulting in 24K sessions. ACET’s publications were downloaded 436 times in the 3rd quarter and 444 times during the last quarter of 2019. i. The communications team in the review period had three reports published on: • Promoting Women and Youth Financial Inclusion for Entrepreneurship and Job Creation: Synthesis Report • Promoting Women and Youth Financial Inclusion for Entrepreneurship and Job Creation: Comparative Study of Selected Sub-Saharan African Countries – Zambia Country Brief • Promoting Women and Youth Financial Inclusion for Entrepreneurship and Job Creation: Comparative Study of Selected Sub-Saharan African Countries – Guinea Country Brief We also published 4 articles and blogs as well as 2 discussion papers during the period. A total of 24000 users visited ACET’s website, indicating a surge of about 7.3% over the previous quarter. ACET further recorded significant developments on our website and social media page. For instance, the financial inclusion synthesis report was downloaded 1736 times by varying audiences in q1. The link here details our published documents and the occurrence of activities on our website and social media page. In Q2 2020: ACET published one main report on Blended Finance as well as several blogs, articles and press releases this quarter. We also advanced significantly in our website and social media activities. Some publications this quarter include Blogs: • How Badly Will the Coronavirus Impact Africa’s Economies? By Yohannis Mulu Tessema and John Kojo Osei • Fiscal Social Contracts and Domestic Resource Mobilization in Sub-Saharan Africa by Richmond Commodore • How Africa Can Fight the Pandemic by Arkebe Oqubay Discussion Papers: • COVID-19: Ten Policy Priorities for Africa’s Recovery, Growth, and Transformation by ACET Reports: • Strengthening the Local Dimension of Blended Finance by ACET, OECD, ECDPM, CWA Press releases • TLP to discuss policy priorities for Africa’s Post COVID-19 recovery • Leadership Group Discusses Priority Issues for African Recovery • ACET, IMF To Hold Webinar on Africa’s Post-COVID-19 Recovery and Growth • Press release: Mavis Owusu-Gyamfi to join ACET in new role of Executive Vice President Q3 2020 Schools, Skills and Jobs series. With information from our recently launched background study for Mastercard Foundation’s Secondary Education in Africa Report, ACET produced and published a four-part in-depth series on ‘Schools, Skills and Jobs’. The articles published between August 31 and September 28 covered four topics: Africa’s Evolving Labour Landscape, High Potential Pathways for Productive Jobs, Getting Schools and Skills Right and Policy Actions for the Future of Work. Interviews: To enhance our profile and impact on society, ACET granted several interviews. These included interviews with CNBC Africa on policies for Africa’s post COIVD-19 recovery, the B&FT and the Institute for New Economic Thinking (INET) on their COVID-19 series. The Belt and Road Portal, a market intelligence and business facilitation platform also interviewed our Director of Research, on the 7th anniversary of the Initiative. This interview marked ACET’s status as the only African Think Tank on the Belt and Road Studies Network (BRSN) initiators council. Both the INET and Belt and Road interviews are yet to be published. Website: The ACET website has been redesigned to ensure that no story goes beyond 30 days on the home page. Analytics from our site suggest that visitors to the site in the third quarter spent on average, one minute and 23 seconds, a 44% increase in time spent from the previous quarter. While improving engagement on our current site, ACET, supported by the Bewsys website development firm is at an initial phase of building a new and improved website with new features that deliver an optimal user experience. Q4 2020 In Q4 2020, ACET’s communications team published multiple pieces including a blog, two discussion papers, one press release and several event-related news articles. We also continued online and media engagement through our website and social media platforms as detailed below. • Blogs: Africa after COVID19: Policy Priorities to drive economic transformation • Discussion Papers: o ACET published Strengthening the digital partnership between Africa and Europe, a discussion paper based on special series on Africa-EU relations during the German EU presidency, produced by members of the European Think Tank Group (ETTG) of which ACET is a member. Download the full ETTG paper here. Authors: By Chux Daniels (ACET and the University of Sussex), Benedikt Erforth (DIE), Rob Floyd (ACET), and Chloe Teevan (ECDPM) o Edward K. Brown and George Boateng co –authored the paper, The politics of market integration in Africa: Trade agreements, protocols, and the ‘crisis of implementation’, which looked at the politics of market integration and how to overcome ‘the crisis f implementation’. • Press releases: ACET Launches Africa’s First AI Challenge for Infrastructure • Website Statistics: ACET’s website also saw 34,000 visitors for the period, many of whom were referred from our social media platforms, particularly LinkedIn. • Social Media: Our media platforms gained 674 followers, 600,000 impressions, and 3731 visits combined. External/Media Engagements: o ACET Senior Director, Dr. Ed Brown joined Dr. Folashadé Soulé and Dr. Camilla Toulmin for the INET’s Commission on Global Economic Transformation (CGET)’s COVID-19 and Africa Series. The series engages African/Africa-based economists and experts about their perspectives on economic transformation and how the COVID situation re-shapes the options and pathways for Africa’s development. They discussed the effects of COVID-19 on regional integration and economic transformation in Africa, and the role of ACET and African think tanks in advising African governments respond to the crisis. Edward Brown: “Growth with ‘DEPTH’ should guide economic transformation in Africa” o ACET Senior Fellow Chux Daniels, joined the Foundation for studies and Research on International Development (FERDI) to discuss the role of digital policies and regulations in addressing the inequalities exposed by the COVID-19 pandemic in various sectors. ACET Senior Fellow discusses Digital Policies in Africa at FERDI webinar Q1 2021 In the first quarter of 2021, ACET published 15 research products. Six of these were articles, two reports, three press releases, and four. Reports • ACET, as part of the Strengthening Evidence use for Development Impact (SEDI) consortium, published the report “The role of Evidence in Policymaking in Ghana – A political Economy Analysis: https://acetforafrica.org/publications/country-reports/the-role-of-evidence-in-policymaking-in-ghana-a-political-economy-analysis/ • Also published, were two background reports on COVID-19 and governance which feed into the peer learning event organised by ACET and the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ) as part of the Compact with Africa (CwA) initiative and the German Reform Partnership Program. https://acetforafrica.org/publications/reports/COVID-19-and-governance-african-countries-share-common-challenges-and-lessons-learned/ Discussion Papers/Essays ACET and the Development and Economic Growth Research Program (DEGRP) in partnership with the Overseas Development Institute (ODI) published the first batch in a special essay series exploring the critical role of innovation in Africa’s recovery from COVID-19. The essays, written by both ACET and ODI colleagues, look at innovation from thematic perspectives, identifying areas where innovation can contribute to effective responses and offer high-level policy recommendations. The four essays published are: • https://acetforafrica.org/publications/COVID-19-essays-on-innovation-and-recovery-for-africa/challenges-and-opportunities-in-the-innovation-ecosystem/ by Freda Yawson • https://acetforafrica.org/publications/COVID-19-essays-on-innovation-and-recovery-for-africa/digital-technologies-labor-markets-and-post-crisis-recovery/ by Karishma Banga • https://acetforafrica.org/publications/COVID-19-essays-on-innovation-and-recovery-for-africa/the-impact-of-innovation-on-youth-employment-and-skills/ by Rianna Owusu • https://acetforafrica.org/publications/COVID-19-essays-on-innovation-and-recovery-for-africa/a-more-inclusive-recovery-for-smes-and-the-informal-sector/ by Charles Odoom. Blogs • Building stronger institutions in Africa starts at the local level. By Ann Cotton: https://acetforafrica.org/media/blogs/building-stronger-institutions-in-africa-starts-at-the-local-level/ • Digital for Development (D4D) or Innovation for Transformation (I4T)? By Rob Floyd. https://acetforafrica.org/media/digital-for-development-d4d-or-innovation-for-transformation-i4t/ Press Releases & Event Articles • New program to strengthen evidence use gets underway with Ghana study • ACET Uses Artificial Intelligence to Predict Future African Infrastructure Needs • Bringing Everyone Along: Solutions for an Inclusive Recovery in Africa Other publications We also republished one podcast, one letter supporting the call for urgent SDR allocation to developing countries, a statement on the AU’s landmark decision to back Dr Arkebe Oqubay, who is a member of the ACET Board to head UNIDO and a tribute to the memory of the late Prof. Benno Ndulu, who was also a member of ACET’s Board of Directors. Events The first quarter recorded these partnered events: ACET and OECD held a session on 21st Century Infrastructure during the Program for the Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA) week on January 18. PIDA week is an annual conference held to accelerate infrastructure implementation on the continent. On January 25, ACET in partnership with the Center for Global Development (CGD) co-hosted a panel discussion on Domestic Resource Mobilization (DRM) in Africa to meet post-COVID-19 economic and social challenges. Following on from that was another partnered peer learning event with GIZ on Good Governance during COVID-19, on January 28. This webinar was under Chatham House Rules. Practitioners from across government, civil society, and development explore how policy decisions and government actions in the fight against COVID-19 have impacted governance in Cote d’lvoire, Ethiopia, Ghana, Morocco, Senegal and Tunisia. On March 15, ACET and the World Bank co-hosted the webinar ‘Bringing Everyone Along: An Inclusive COVID19 Recovery in Africa’. Q2 2021 For the period April-June 2021, ACET published 12 research products. Eight of these were Essays & discussion papers and 4 event articles. Discussion Papers/Essays ACET and the Development and Economic Growth Research Programme (DEGRP) in partnership with the Overseas Development Institute (ODI) published the first batch in a special essay series exploring the critical role of innovation in Africa’s recovery from COVID-19. The essays, written by both ACET and ODI colleagues, look at innovation from thematic perspectives, identifying areas where innovation can contribute to effective responses and offer high-level policy recommendations. The second batch of the ACET-ODI essays were published during the 2nd quarter and included: • FinTech: An Inclusive Pathway to Economic Recovery by Victor Murinde and Efthymios Rizopoulos7 • China’s Role in Promoting Innovation and Productivity in Africa by Linda Calabrese • Keeping Transformation on Track for Emerging Industries by Carlos Oya • The Case for a New International Accord on Diffusing Innovations and Building Technological Capacity by Christine Oughton • Emerging Lessons on AI-Enabled Health Care by Klaus Tilmes • Science Systems, COVID-19, and Agenda 2063 by Chux Daniels and Rob Floyd Also published was a discussion paper on COVID-19 and Governance in Africa. The paper identifies a few of the most prominent ways that the pandemic has both threatened and encouraged good governance practices in Africa. It is derived from key findings in two ACET research papers—Responding to COVID-19: An overview of governance issues and Governance and COVID-19: Scan of COVID-19 governance-related policy actions— produced in support of the German government’s Reform Partnership program, a multi-country initiative under the G20 Compact with Africa. As a member of European Think Tank Group (ETTG), ACET contributed and published a report on AU-EU relations with regards to climate change issues. Press Releases & Event Articles • We published an article on COVID-19 and Governance in Africa: Threats, Opportunities, and the Way Forward18 • ACET also published an op-ed, Education must be a crisis priority, not an afterthought, first published in ‘How we made it in Africa.’ The op-ed, authored by Dr Edward Brown challenges African governments to use the current crisis as an opportunity to rethink education systems considering the preexisting challenges that are now exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. • In a Q&A session on Ghana’s economic outlook: business, trade and economic transformation, Prof. John Asafu-Adjaye, Senior Fellow and Charles Odoom, Head of Private Sector Development at ACET, discussed the current and future business environment in Ghana. • Finally, an article, which investigated innovation policy gaps and examined the potential for transformative innovation policy frameworks to be applied in African countries through case studies of Côte d’Ivoire and Nigeria by ACET Fellow, Chux Daniels was also published. Events • April 19: ACET and CGD co-hosted a panel discussion on the gendered impacts of COVID-19 crisis and how to ensure women and girls are not left behind in the path to recovery in Africa. • April 29: ACET held a validation workshop on public sector capacity development in Ghana • May 19: ACET convened a webinar on Strengthening Education and Learning Systems to Deliver a 4IR-Ready Workforce • June 16: ACET organized a virtual Policy Learning Event: Smallholder Farmer Voices in policy discourse • June 10: PSD (Private Sector Development) Validation Workshop & Dialogue on Promoting Sustainable Export Processing Zones in Ghana • June 10: OSIWA Validation Workshop on "Barriers to women's employment in the future world of work" - Senegal Country Study • June 29: ACET hosted a virtual workshop on Barriers to women’s employment in the future world of work – Ghana country Study Q3 2021 Publications As noted above, during this reporting period ACET published the third edition of our flagship product the African Transformation Report (ATR). The report, Integrating to Transform, explores the critical need for African countries to work together beyond trade to tackle shared challenges, harness regional opportunities, and enable economies to scale – and in turn, accelerate Africa’s economic transformation. Discussion papers/Essays Evidence in policymaking: Enhancing linkages between government and non-government institutions in Ghana by By Richmond Commodore and George Boateng We also published the final batch of innovation essays by ACET and ODI: • Lessons for a High-Quality Recovery in Africa By Linda Calabrese, Kunal Sen, Chisom Ubabukoh, Dirk Willem te Velde, and Steve Wiggins • Digital Innovations & Leapfrogging: Africa’s Window of Opportunity By Xiaolan Fu • Fostering Pandemic-Era Innovations in Agriculture By Steve Wiggins • Climate-Smart Agriculture as a Pathway to Recovery By John Asafu-Adjaye • Strengthening EU-AU Dialogue on Innovation and Digital Transformation By Rob Floyd Blogs/Opinion The Imperative of Digital Infrastructure for Africa’s Future by Rob Floyd To be successful, the African Continental Free Trade Area needs a gender protocol by Mavis Owosu-Gyamfi Press Releases: Maura K. Leary to Join ACET as Director of Communications Events • 15th July- ACET launched the 3rd African Transformation Forum • 28th July – ACET and some partner organizations convened a roundtable discussion on Ghana's post-covid economic recovery and its alignment to the African Union Green Recovery Action Plan. This webinar forms part of a 4-year project on Supporting Investment and Trade in Africa (SITA). The project, which studies "The role of the AfCFTA in promoting resilient economic recovery in Africa" is a collaboration between ACET and ODI in partnership with the Secretariat of African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and African Trade Policy Centre (ATPC) of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) • 5th August – ACET and ODI organized a roundtable discussion on Kenya’s post-COVID economic recovery and its alignment to the AFCFTA • 7th September, ACET in collaboration with the World Bank organized a technical workshop with CwA countries to review progress to date, discuss country feedback on the effectiveness of the CWA and initiate discussions on the next set of country reforms. • 16th September- The ACET Private Sector Development team conveyed an onboard/orientation workshop for SMEs that have been admitted into the first cohort of the ACET Business Transform (ABT) program. • 28th September- ACET partnered with the Overseas Development Institute (ODI) to organize a workshop and dialogue on Developmental Activities and Impacts of National Development Banks, the Case of Ghana.