Dear Friends,

On behalf of The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and the student organizers of the annual Wharton African Business Forum (WABF), it is our pleasure to welcome you to this year’s Forum on Saturday, November 7th, 2009 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. For over 17 years, WABF has been one of the largest student run African conferences in the U.S., attracting over 500 people from all over the globe.

The theme for this year’s Forum is “Seizing Growth Opportunities in a New Global Economy”. Africa has had tremendous growth over the past couple of years and the world has noted the continent’s newly found trajectory.  Given the current global environment, Africa needs to position itself adequately in order to maintain its robust growth. This year’s Forum will therefore address the urgent issue of what the current generation of Africans can do now in today’s macroeconomic landscape in order to fully participate in Africa’s renaissance and demonstrate why Africa is indeed the “New Frontier”.

The 2009 Forum is unique in that it goes beyond discussing the traditional investment perspectives of business in Africa to analyzing the role of women and social entrepreneurs, whose actions have had and continue to have significant impact on the continent's development. Other discussion areas of interest include investing in post-conflict countries; building successful regional businesses; private equity; real estate; infrastructure; agribusiness; “brain gain”; SMEs and microfinance; African banking during global turmoil; and next steps for developing Africa’s capital markets.

For the first time, WABF will introduce the “Doing Business In Africa” (DBIA) Workshop, to help entrepreneurs identify opportunities and invest in different African countries. The workshop will address various pertinent issues such as competitive advantages in different African countries, set-up costs and, tax concerns amongst many other topics relevant to locating a business Africa. Because the Workshop will represent different regions in Africa, the diversity of the countries represented provides a unique vantage point to those looking to participate in a continent which accounts for 20% of the world's population and comprised of 53 diverse countries.

The WABF Business Plan Competition is another unique platform that promotes entrepreneurial initiatives in Africa. By leveraging the relationships that Wharton has established with the Investment Community, participants in the competition will have access to capital for new ventures, business expansion or trade development into new markets.  The submission date for the business plan will be this summer.

For the highly qualified students and professionals attending WABF and are looking to explore career opportunities in the continent, there will be an opportunity to add your resume in the WABF Resume Database to be considered for job openings at the sponsors and other participating recruiting organizations. An invite-only interview process will be held on campus for the selected participants. Prospective students can also expect to benefit from a tour of the school, networking activities and advice from admissions council on how to put together a successful application.

The opening event will be a cultural night on Friday, November 6th. It will be a celebration of Africa’s rich cultural heritage through live music, visual and creative arts, and gastronomic delights from the continent. The closing dinner will pay tribute to African pioneers and visionaries who have made significant contributions to the field of business both on the continent and at a global scale.

Whatever your vision or aspiration may be, we look forward to seeing and welcoming you to the Forum in November in what will be the most transformational student led Forum on Africa in the U.S.  Come and see Africa through us and be inspired.

Regards,

Pauline Idogho
Brian Kiai

Co-Chairs, 2009 Wharton African Business Forum