DATE / TIME:

November 9, 2015    08:00 - November 13, 2015    17:00

Location:

Accra

The United Nations University Institute for Natural Resources in Africa (UNU-INRA), in collaboration with the International Training Centre of the ILO and the ILO’s Green Jobs Programme, is organising a regional forum and training workshop on “Greening Industries and Green Entrepreneurship Promotion as a Driver of Sustainable and Inclusive Growth in rural Africa”.

Date:           9th – 13th November, 2015

Location:  Accra, Ghana

The overall objective of the regional forum and training workshop is to enhance and build the capacity of policy makers and researchers in Africa to understand the role of business in the transition to a green economy in rural Africa and to promote the creation, development and growth of green and resource efficient enterprises in the region.

More specifically, the event aims to:

• Establish a common understanding of the specific positioning of business on green growth and labour market related concepts, strategies and approaches, and their  policy implication for rural Africa;
• Provide a comprehensive understanding of the linkages  between environment, enterprise performance and innovation (business model, business model innovation and green business model innovation) so that the value of the environment can be appropriately accounted for in business decisions in rural Africa;
• Analyse the greening of industries, enterprises and workplaces in rural Africa (resource input optimization and minimization of environmental risk and pollution in the production process and supply chain) through the review of well-established approaches and workplace practices that guide businesses towards cleaner and more sustainable production (including eco-efficiency, cleaner production, sustainable supply chain management, life-cycle thinking and circular economy);
• Show and discuss how to unleash the potential of new business opportunities in the environmental goods and services supply chain, especially for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in rural Africa, through the promotion of green entrepreneurship and the understanding of technological implications and environmental benefits of eco-innovation;
• Introduce the concept of decent work for sustainable development and how it can be promoted through the greening of enterprises and the promotion of green entrepreneurship in rural Africa;
• Address the role of governments, business associations and researchers in establishing an enabling environment for green enterprise development, through policy instruments, research-based advocacy and innovative service development.