Low-income countries (LICs) have experienced substantial economic growth over the last two decades. But this growth has not been sufficiently inclusive, transformational or resilient.

This two-day conference co-organised by the DFID-ESRC Growth Research Programme (DEGRP) and the African Economic Research Consortium (AERC) brought together business, government and research representatives from Africa and Asia to explore what can be done to turn this situation around. It drew on cutting-edge research to discuss how we can leverage agriculture, innovation, and financial sector development to build better economic opportunities for all.

The conference agenda included high-profile keynote speeches, policy panel sessions and research panel sessions. The policy panel sessions provided an opportunity for ministers, academics and private sector organisations to debate important policy issues relating to agriculture, finance and innovation. The research sessions gave academics and researchers a space to explore new research on these issues in more depth.

Catch up via: 

• Conference agenda
• Event videos
• Photo gallery
• DEGRP-AERC speaker presentations (zip file)
• Selected media articles:
  • Agriculture stakeholders urge govt, to leverage on agriculture to spur economy – Citizen Digital, home of Citizen TV, largest TV station in Kenya.
  • Banking sector not fully structured to support economy – The Star Digital
  • All smallholder farmers to have access to credit by 2020 says AERC – X-News Digital
  • DEGRP, AERC push for inclusive economy in Africa – The African Business Fortune Magazine