23rd to 25th July 2025
Reset africa summit
Rethinking Africa's Strategic Position Amid Global Shifts in Foreign Policy: A Conference on African-led Investment, Trade and Development Financing.
The Summit will chart a new course for the continent’s strategic position. Across four core themes—Trade; International Development, Foreign Aid & Fundraising; African Government Response & Uptake; and African Philanthropy & the Private Sector—expert panels, plenaries, and breakout sessions will drive evidence-based discourse. This conference will host an esteemed roster of speakers and policymakers, including African ministers of finance, trade, and foreign affairs; ambassadors to major diplomatic missions; governors of central banks; directors of regional economic communities; senior officials from multilateral development agencies; CEOs of leading African corporations; heads of philanthropic foundations; and eminent civil society strategists.
23rd to 25th July 2025
4 Thematic areas
Explore the Conference discussion areas
Theme One
While the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) offers a blueprint for unifying markets, diversifying partnerships, and adding value through regional value chains, realizing its promise requires targeted investments in trade facilitation, digital infrastructure, and institutional reform to bridge capacity gaps and strengthen Africa’s resilience.
- With the current realities, what is African position and how it is leveraged?
How can African economies rethink and adapt their trade strategies amid rising global protectionism?
What role can regional trade blocs like AfCFTA play in shielding the continent from external economic shocks?
In what ways can South-South cooperation and emerging alliances with blocs such as BRICS help Africa diversify its trade landscape?
What have been the real sectoral impacts—both immediate and lasting—of past U.S. tariffs on African exports like textiles, agriculture, and rare earths?
How should African nations anticipate and respond to future shifts in U.S. trade policy, including the reintroduction or expansion of tariffs?
Theme Two
Donor conditionality favoring neoliberal reforms may exacerbate inequality and stifle context-specific development strategies, while emerging philanthropic and South–South cooperation models remain fragmented and under-utilised.
- What are the lessons learnt from practice to enhance existing resource mobilization processes and guide new engagements considering the current realities?
What bold and innovative strategies can African governments and CSOs adopt to boost domestic resource mobilisation and lessen aid dependency?
How have sudden aid withdrawals revealed weaknesses in African aid management systems—and what structural reforms are needed?
Can alternative financing models like public-private partnerships and African philanthropy effectively bridge the gap left by declining international aid?
Which context-driven fundraising approaches can best support African CSOs and public institutions in navigating shifting donor landscapes?
How might digital platforms and community-based financial innovations transform local fundraising and development financing in Africa?
Theme Three
African governments’ ability to absorb global economic shocks is highly uneven, reflecting disparities in political will, institutional strength, and policy coherence. While some states with robust central banks and finance ministries have managed crises effectively, others hobbled by corruption, weak bureaucracies, and heavy aid or debt burdens struggle to maintain service delivery and fiscal stability.
- What then is the role of governments in development?
How are African governments reconfiguring public spending and service delivery in response to shrinking foreign aid, and what insights emerge from varied national experiences?
What institutional innovations—like sovereign wealth funds, PPPs, and tax reforms—are helping fill Africa’s development financing gaps, and how effective are they?
In what ways do political leadership, governance quality, and institutional capacity influence Africa’s ability to withstand global economic shocks, including pandemics and climate crises?
How can regional bodies like the AU, AfDB, and RECs drive policy alignment, fiscal resilience, and technical support for vulnerable states?
Can regional integration offer a viable pathway to strengthen collective resilience, reduce external dependency, and promote cohesive responses to global disruptions?
Theme four
Despite deep-rooted traditions of mutual support, including Kenya’s harambee and South Africa’s stokvels, these practices seldom scale into coherent, strategy-driven mechanisms. Additionally, the CSR initiatives often lack the policy incentives and accountability systems needed for sustained impact.
- How can the African public and private sector leverage this opportunity to direct and determine development?
Which models of African philanthropy—traditional, religious, or institutional—are most effective in bridging development gaps, and what conditions support their success?
How can the private sector be intentionally engaged to complement, not replace, public investment in critical services like health, education, and infrastructure?
What legal and fiscal reforms are needed to unlock domestic giving, foster social entrepreneurship, and spur philanthropic innovation across Africa?
In what ways does African philanthropy challenge or reinforce existing power dynamics in development, particularly regarding equity and accountability?
How can philanthropic actors, governments, and international partners collaborate to improve coordination, transparency, and measurable impact in delivering social investments?
Conference Agenda
The Reset Africa Conference will feature a dynamic three-day agenda combining high-level keynote addresses, thought-provoking panel discussions, and seven in-depth breakout sessions focused on trade, aid, governance, and African philanthropy. Each day opens and closes with curated plenary panels, complemented by interactive team activities, networking lounges, and daily feedback forums to engage delegates throughout. With health-conscious meals, dedicated tea breaks, and a signature dinner experience, the agenda is designed to foster dialogue, reflection, and collaboration toward actionable outcomes.
- Opening Ceremony: Welcome by Scofield Associates & Host Country Official.
- Keynote One: Trade in a Fragmented Global Order.
- Keynote Two: Repositioning Africa in Global Trade & Diplomacy.
- Keynote Three: Africa’s Strategic Trade Diplomacy in a Multipolar World.
- Morning Plenary Panel: The New Global Trade Terrain – Impacts of Protectionism and Regionalism.
- Breakout Session 1 (Room 1): Africa’s Regional Trade Dynamics: Examining AfCFTA in Practice, and the legacy of historical trade patterns and global power dynamics in shaping contemporary African Trade Policies and Regional Integration.
- Breakout Session 2 (Room 2): The Impact of Tariffs on South-South Trade Engagement: Diversification or Dependency?
- Breakout Session 3 (Room 3): What is Africa’s Strategy for Trade Diplomacy?
- Evening Plenary Panel : Moderated feedback from Breakout 1, 2 & 3 and the day’s summary of the presentations.
- Keynote Four: From Aid to Agency: Africa’s Political Economy.
- Keynote Five: Aid Conditionalities, Localization, and Africa’s Engagement in the New Development Environment.
- Keynote Six: Realigning Africa’s Development Cooperation Towards Self Sufficiency.
- Keynote Seven: Fundraising Innovations and Alternatives for Africa’s Civil Society Organizations.
- Morning Plenary: Foreign Aid Dynamics – Implications to Africa’s Development Architecture: Donor shifts, policy conditionalities, institutional adaptation.
- Breakout Session 4 (Room 1): Financing the Future: Domestic Resource Mobilisation Strategies.
- Breakout Session 5 (Room 2): Aid Conditionalities, Localization, and Africa’s Engagement in the New Development Environment: Finding the Balance.
- Breakout Session 6 (Room 3): Realigning Africa’s Development Cooperation Towards Self Sufficiency.
- Breakout Session 7 (Room 4): Innovations in Fundraising: Tech, Communities, and Crowds Sourcing for Development.
- Evening Plenary:
Moderated feedback from Breakout 1, 2 & 3 and the day’s summary of the presentations.
- Cocktail and Fireside Chat with Ministers and Pan-African Thought Leaders (7:00–10:00 p.m.)
- Keynote Eight: African States’ Development in a Post-Aid World.
- Keynote Nine: Philanthropy’s Role in Africa’s Development.
- Keynote Ten: Private Sector, CSR and Capital Investment in Africa’s Development.
- Morning Plenary: African Governments & the Shifting Global Order Discussion Points: Fiscal reform, service delivery, regional collaboration, CSR and Philanthropy.
- Breakout Session 8 (Room 1): Institutional Innovation: What’s Working in Reforms? (Government Responses to Global Shifts).
- Breakout Session 9 (Room 2): From Harambee to High Net Worth: The Landscape of African Philanthropy.
- Breakout Session 10 (Room 3): Private Sector, CSR and Capital Investment in Africa’s Development.
- Afternoon Panel: Nairobi Declaration – Summary of outcomes and commitments.
- Closing Reflections, Appreciations, and Vote of Thanks: Conference Chair & Scofield Associates.
Sponsorship
We invite our sponsors to take advantage of tailored opportunities to elevate their brand visibility and actively engage with a diverse network of policymakers, researchers, development practitioners, and private sector leaders shaping Africa’s development future. Our sponsorship packages are designed to maximize exposure and facilitate meaningful interactions throughout the conference. Align your brand with transformative dialogue and innovation — partner with us as a sponsor today.
- Keynote guest slot (5–8 minutes) each day.
- Two breakout sessions.
- 10 all-access passes.
- Priority exhibition booth.
- Logo on all digital assets, programs, and signage.
- Dedicated press release & social media campaign.
- Inclusion and invitation to press, releases, newsletter & knowledge documents.
- Engagement at the ministerial session.
- Keynote guest slot (5–8 minutes) two days.
- Two Breakout sessions.
- Premium branding in breakout sessions
- 8 all-access passes.
- Priority exhibition booth.
- Logo on website & digital publication
- Inclusion and invitation to press, releases, newsletter & knowledge documents.
- Engagement at the ministerial session.
- Opening plenary panel slot.
- One breakout session.
- Six all-access passes.
- Exhibition booth.
- Logo on digital platforms & materials.
- Featured in press release & newsletter.
- One conference speaking slot.
- One breakout session.
- Four all-access passes.
- Logo visibility on website & materials.
- Inclusion in press release & newsletter.
Reset Africa Summit will bring together a diverse group of stakeholders including academics, government officials, regional and continental institutions, private sector actors, philanthropic organizations, and civil society. Its goal is to foster interdisciplinary and cross-sectoral dialogue on development challenges and solutions relevant to Africa.
Academic Experts & Practitioners
Development economists, political scientists, and scholars in international relations and public policy researching Africa's economic and governance transformation.
Government Policymakers
Senior officials from African ministries of finance, planning, and foreign affairs involved in shaping national development strategies and external partnerships.
Regional and Continental Institutions
Representatives from AU organs, RECs (e.g., ECOWAS, EAC), and development banks focused on continental integration, economic resilience, and cross-border collaboration.
Philanthropic and Private Sector Leaders
Foundations, impact investors, and corporate social investment managers contributing to Africa’s development financing and social innovation ecosystem.
call for Conference Papers
Anchored on African knowledge
Author instructions
All the Abstacts will align to the following requirements:
- 350 Word Abstract
- 4 - 6 Key words
- APA Referencing and Footnoting
- Submission deadline extended to 20th June 2025
- resetafricasummit-abstracts@scofieldassociates.co.ke
