On Think Tanks (OTT) in collaboration with foraus and the Think Tank Hub convened thinktankers, think tank scholars, policy entrepreneurs and think tanks funders from around the world at the 2019 On Think Tanks Conference in Geneva Switzerland, to share experiences, present their research, and establish new or strengthen old partnerships. The conference also provided a platform for participants to present new research, evidence informed policy and seek feedback from fellow participants. It also provided an opportunity for participants to explore new collaboration and launch new partnerships. Dr. Chukwuka Onyekwena participated in a parallel session on “Unrestricted core funding is over: how to move on?” The discussion focused on how think tanks can reform their organizational structure to adapt to new funding systems as unrestricted core funding becomes a thing of the past. The event was held from February 4-7, 2019.

On Think Tanks in partnership with Foraus and the Think Tank Hub organised the 2019 Winterschool for Thinktankers (WISCH), an initiative aimed at inspiring the next generation of think tank leaders.

The Winterschool provided a platform for young and proactive individuals to develop their knowledge and understanding of think tanks and to prepare themselves to become future policy entrepreneurs.

CSEA research associate and OTT-TTI Fellow, Joseph Ishaku, participated in the programme which was held in Geneva, Switzerland from 27th of January – 2nd of February 2019.

The South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA) and the Global Economic Governance (GEG) Africa project organized a conference on Africa’s priorities at the G20 tagged “G20 and Africa: Navigating African Priorities for the G20”. The conference brought together representatives of the T20 African Standing Group made up of leading African think tanks, African policy makers, researchers and thought leaders to discuss how Africa can contribute to key G20 priorities in a challenging global environment.

The conference provided a platform for African stakeholders to discuss key G20 priorities emerging out of the Argentine G20 Presidency and incoming Japanese G20 Presidency thereby enabling a more active participation of Africa in key global political, economic and developmental processes.

The conference featured sessions which discussed various issues including: the changing landscape of infrastructure finance, in particular the development of infrastructure as an asset class, combating illicit financial flows, specifically focusing on trade mispricing and discussions on the future of the world of work against the background of the digital transformation of the work place. The meeting also held a closed session where the policy briefings of the African think tank members were presented and discussed in preparation for the upcoming T20 ASG meeting in Addis Abba co-hosted by UNECA in mid-February 2019.

Dr. Chukwuka Onyekwena participated in a high-level panel discussion on mobilising resources for infrastructure development in Africa. The panel featured discussions including What African countries can do to promote economic diversification and expand revenue generation; how to reduce the effect of commodity price shocks on fiscal stability.  The event was held on 29 January 2019 in Pretoria, South Africa.

Representatives of West African Think Tanks participated in a workshop on the revitalisation of West African Think Tanks Network (WATTNet) on 21 and 22 January 2019 in Dakar, Senegal. The discussions which were led by Consortium pour le Recherche Économique et Sociale(CRES), Senegal, provided a platform for participants to reflect and share ideas on how to revive the network.

WATTNet was created and launched in March 2016 in Accra, Ghana. The network was intended to be a platform for the development and exchange of ideas, information and experiences among think tanks in West Africa, to help address the region's key development challenges while strengthening the organisational performance of the member institutions of the network. However, the network has been faced with challenges towards achieving its objectives.

The 2-day workshop provided a platform for participants to establish a clear and comprehensive diagnosis of what prevented WATTNet from becoming fully operational and undertaking its designed action plan described in its strategic framework. The group also reflected on the implementation plan of WATTNet in order to understand why members failed to abide by the core values and agree on the structure as stipulated in its Strategic framework. The workshop also allowed the group to: ·        identify  the  main  issues  and  challenges  that  hindered the effective  functioning  of  the network; ·        draw lessons on the inhibiting factors; and ·        develop an immediate action plan to make WATTNet operational.

CSEA senior research fellow, Dr. Grace Onubedo participated in this workshop.

The third edition of the International Conference on the Emergence of Africa (ICEA III) convened more than 1000  decision-makers and experts from around fifty countries around the world including : leaders of international and African institutions, eminent personalities from the private sector, academia, experts and representatives of civil society under the theme "Emergence, the Private Sector and Inclusiveness". The conference featured a high-level session bringing together heads of state and government, heads of institutions, and business leaders, highlighted six major underlying themes the issue of the conference. These are: • promote stability, both politically and securely, but also maintain the long-term strategy of emergence; • Mobilize internal resources and encourage foreign direct investment (FDI) in strategic sectors with technology transfer; • Develop human capital with special access to training-employment adequacy; • Establish a network of local SMEs / SMIs through better access to financing and better consideration of local content in development projects; • Broaden the size of African markets through country connectivity infrastructure and business development reforms and; • Initiate a sustainable industrialization dynamic for a better valuation of raw materials. These themes were further explored in discussions in plenary sessions and parallel panels that provided answers to questions relating to the promotion of the private sector as a driver of emergence, and of inclusiveness, a guarantee of the sustainability of emergence. CSEA senior research fellow, Dr. Grace Onubedo participated in this high-level meeting which was held from 17 to 19 January 2019, at the Abdou Diouf International Conference Center in Diamniadio, Senegal.