South-South Integration - Sharing of Policy Experiences

This webinar aims at sharing digital policy experiences of developing countries focusing on the lessons which can be learnt by Ethiopia. The paper prepared by Policy Studies Institute, Ethiopia under the UNCTAD-project will be presented along with other country-experiences. It brings together policy makers and researchers from various developing countries and addresses a wide audience. The objective is to stimulate domestic debate on the policy agenda and the key priorities for the 2022.

The key objectives and expected outcomes of the event are the following:

• To assess the challenges faced by Ethiopia in its digital transformation
• To discuss the lessons that can be learnt by Ethiopia from other developing countries, especially China which has been able to successfully transform itself from an agrarian economy to a global manufacturing and assembly hub and now into a digital leader.
• To create an open dialogue in which member States can gain a better understanding of the key industrial and trade challenges that developing countries are facing in the current global economic environment.

Programme

(Central European Time)

Moderator: Dr. Rashmi Banga, Senior Economic Affairs Officer, UNCTAD

14:00–14:05       Welcome address UNCTAD

14:05–14:15       Keynote address: – Professor Beyene Peteros, Executive Director of PSI

14:15–15.00       Panel discussion

• Tsegay Gebrekidan Tekleselassie, Senior Researcher, PSI Ethiopia (15 mins)
• Chanuka Wattegama, Director of Policy, ICTA, Sri Lanka (10 mins)
• Safdar Sohail, Dean, NIPP and Member Prime Minister’s Task Force on IT, Pakistan (10 mins)
• Esther Sri Astuti Agustin, Program Director of the Institute for Development. of Economics and Finance (INDEF), Indonesia (10 mins)

15:00–15:25       Open discussion (20 mins)

15:25–15:30       Concluding remarks, UNCTAD and PSI (5 mins)

The event will take place through zoom. Online registration is required.

Watch video recording