The objective of the Innovation Africa Summit, to be held October 5 to 7 in Cape Town, was to encourage greater investment in education and professional training in South Africa and across the continent, organisers AfricanBrains said.

Featuring participation by top level government Ministers and officials from across Africa, as well as representatives of the world’s top technology brands, the summit was aimed at facilitating crucial public-private partnerships to guide the future development of Africa’s fast-growing information and communications technology (ICT), education and technology sectors.

The South African government is supporting the event, which is organised in partnership with the University of the Western Cape. To date, the Ministers of Education, Science and Technology, as well as representatives from Burundi, Kenya, Malawi, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe had confirmed attendance.

Confirmed attendance was also expected from Ministers from Angola, Botswana, Ghana, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria and Tanzania.

The conference will feature keynote addresses from government and private sector leaders, focusing on the transformation of African economies, the realisation of advances in technology for the benefit of education, as well as research in Africa.

Summit attendees will have the opportunity to debate key issues, such as developing e-skills and the knowledge economy, investment in African digital content, e-learning, improving connectivity and advancing multistakeholder partnerships.

The summit follows the Southern African ICT for Education Summit that took place in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, in January.