News

On 28 February 2023, AERC hosted Veerne Koops, an Advisor to the (dep) Director-General for International Cooperation at the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA). Ms. Veerne passed by AERC enroute Kigali, Rwanda for the Knowledge Platform on Inclusive Development Policies (INCLUDE) Platform meeting that will be held on 2-3 March 2023, to plan the next phase for the platform (2023 -2026).

Ms. Veerne represents the MFA at the Knowledge Platform on Inclusive Development Policies (INCLUDE) Platform, one of the five platforms which the ministry funds. African Economic Research Consortium (AERC) is a consortium partner in INCLUDE together with the African Studies Centre and the Broker. Since 2012 when INCLUDE was established, AERC has enjoyed a cordial relationship with the MFA. The MFA considers AERC as an important knowledge partner, and the visit provided Ms. Veerne with an opportunity to further understand AERC’s work and to discuss areas of common interest for potential collaboration.

The Ag. Executive Director of AERC, Prof. Théophile Azomahou received Ms. Veerne and introduced her to the AERC staff. The discussions involved AERC’s key interventions in training, research, and policy outreach and how these have influenced policy-making and practice in Africa. Clearly, the MFA and AERC have a common interest to contribute to SDG 8 on decent work and economic growth. Other areas of common interest are green jobs, impacts of climate change, digitalization and the rise of intangibles, resilience, and the impacts of Chinese investments in Africa. The common challenges such as ‘populism’ and ‘post truth’ and how consistent high-quality research and systematic engagement can instil confidence among decision-makers to use evidence were also discussed. AERC and MFA will continue with deliberations that would lead to collaborations to address current and emerging opportunities and challenges in these areas.