The theme for the 2015 African Economic Conference (AEC) is Addressing Poverty and Inequality in the Post 2015 Development Agenda.  As outlined in the African Union’s (AU) Agenda 2063 and the Africa’s Common Position on Post 2015 documents, the vision is for “an integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa, driven by its own citizens and representing a dynamic force in the global arena.”  Key among Africa’s aspirations is to achieve prosperity that is based on inclusive growth, and development that is people driven and that also unleashes the potential of women and youth.  Given this stated goal of the Common Position and the central aim of Agenda 2063 to eradicate poverty in all its ramifications in one generation and to build shared prosperity through social and economic transformation; the theme of this conference is very timely.

The AEC will bring together policy-makers, researchers and development practitioners from Africa and from around the world to make a strategic contribution to the implementation of Africa’s vision and the identification of concrete actions necessary for poverty and inequality reduction in the context of the post-2015 development agenda. The Conference will provide an opportunity to assess the impact of current growth strategies on poverty, inequality and human development in Africa. In addition, the conference will discuss successes, lessons learned and identify remaining gaps, challenges and emerging issues on the topic. It will encompass in-depth presentations of policy-oriented research by both established academics and emerging researchers from the continent who will debate and recommend policy options on how to reduce poverty and inequality for Africa’s equitable, inclusive and environmentally sustainable development.