A Historical Moment for Africa

Olivier Campenon is guest blogging for the Forum. He is President, E*MEA, BT and is attending the World Economic Forum on Africa

As the plane touches down in Johannesburg after the long overnight flight, I am thinking of the same journey I made exactly a month ago. Then, my team in South Africa was hosting Jeff Kelly, CEO of BT Global Services, for a series of meetings with customers and discussions on our strategy for the country and the wider region as a whole. It was his first visit to South Africa and without understatement it would be fair to say he was mightily impressed by the potential of the country, its economy and not least of the warmth and pride of its people.

I remember my first visit to South Africa; it was a long time ago and I have been coming back regularly since. Yet over all those years, I never failed to be impressed with exactly the same potential that made such a lasting impression on our CEO. I firmly believe this is a historical moment for Africa; with both the recent revolutions in the north of the continent and the rapid economic development we have seen over the past few years we can truly hope to see dynamic, open economies develop throughout Africa as is already the case in South Africa itself.

As I head for the World Economic Forum sessions, I am once again looking forward to the whirlwind of meetings and thought provoking discussions. At BT, we believe in the power of networks. And these come in many guises, from technological ones like the one we are best known for – to human networks, connecting businessmen, diplomats, artists as well as ordinary people simply wanting to share ideas with someone from another part of the world.   It is these personal connections, whether face to face or through technology that are helping to shape what we all want to achieve – a secure and better future for every citizen and all nations in the new global economy.