Organized labour under the auspices of Industriall global union with over a million membership in Africa holds a Special Policy Dialogue on the Fourth Industrial Revolution (Industry 4.0): Implications For Africa on Friday November 17th November 2017 at Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Center, Abuja at 10.00a.m.
The Special Policy Dialogue session is part of the build up activities marking 2017 Africa industrialization Day (AID) on Monday November 20th which also holds at Yar’ Adua Centre in Abuja. The high point of the AID is a planned all stakeholders’ mass rally for beneficiation and Industrialization of African economies in Abuja on Monday.
In a statement in Abuja on Wednesday, Comrade Issa Aremu, the Africa Vice President of the global union with 50 million manufacturing workers world wide said the objective of the Policy Dialogue is to critically examine the opportunities for Africa to diversify its economy, create mass decent jobs and promote diversification within the current context of international discussion on digital/smart manufacturing (Industry 4.0).
Africa industrialization Day (AID) is a significant day declared by United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) as an annual platform for Governments, businesses and organized labour linked to industrial development to examine ways and means to stimulate Africa industrialization process.
The broad theme for 2017 Africa Industrialisation Day (AID) is “African Industrial Development: A Pre-Condition For Effective And Sustainable Continental Free Trade Area”. The Vice President of Nigeria, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, GCON is expected to declare the event open as a Special Guest of Honour.
According to Comrade Aremu, “this year’s (2017) enlarged edition of Africa Industrialisation Day (AID) assumes a special importance. The Geneva based IndustriALL global with 50 million members Worldwide collaborates with the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment and the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) to complement the globally acknowledged activist Executive orders and measures of Buhari administration targeted at reindustrializing and diversifying Nigerian economy.
Representatives of affiliate unions of IndustriALL Global Union in the Sub-Saharan Africa Region and the headquarters in Geneva are expected to attend in significant number. Representatives from trade unions, from textile, petroleum, chemical, automotive and energy sectors, the organized private sector, relevant agencies of Government, Ministry of Industry, Trade and investment, UNIDO, government and other relevant stakeholders are expected at the Policy Dialogue session. The labour leader disclosed that the expected outcome of the Friday workshop is the articulation of what he called “Industrial Manifesto for Africa” with bias for value addition to African raw materials, mass decent job creation, good working and living conditions for African workers.
