"Africa will become the cradle of the global workforce": Francois Ndengwe at SPIEF-2025

The St. Petersburg International Economic Forum 2025 is taking place in Russia from June 18 to 21. Its business program started with a key session "Shaping a New Platform for Global Growth." The organizer is the National Centre Russia, and the moderator is Maxim Oreshkin, Deputy Head of the Presidential Administration of the Russian Federation.

One of the main focuses of the discussion is Africa as a driver of the future economic structure. Chairman of the African Advisory Council Francois Ndengwe stressed that demographic growth is turning Africa into the future cradle of the global workforce.

"It's not just statistics, it's human capital, which can become a new driver of global growth. Those who are already investing in education and building universities in Africa, tomorrow they will work with Africa to shape markets and set the rules of the game," said Francois Ndengwe.

According to him, Russia can be seen as a good example of a country who is actively developing educational cooperation with the countries of the continent.

"It is very important to pay attention to education. We look at Russia as an example. We need our Peter the Great in Africa to bring enlightenment. Vladimir Putin said that the share of African students in Russian universities will increase. We are very happy about this. I thank Russia for its contribution to the education of Africa. Those who teach define the rules and build the markets," Ndengwe stressed.

In his opening speech, Maxim Oreshkin noted that the sense-centric session sets the tone for the entire business program of the forum. According to him, despite the tensed international agenda, it is important not to lose sight of the fundamental processes shaping the future.

"This year, the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum is taking place against the backdrop of tumultuous events in the world. This includes the conflict in the Middle East, and trade wars. A lot of time will be devoted to this agenda at the forum today. We must not forget which long-term trends and challenges have led to the current situation, which trends are basic and decisive. It is important to have an open dialogue about how we are going to build the world of the future, and how to shape a new platform for global growth. In which countries will this global growth take place, on what technologies will it be built, on what principles and cultural code? Our task is to make movement forward such that it will be beneficial for people in all those countries that, like Russia, are working on the future. It is through open dialogue that our future and our understanding of it are built," Maxim Oreshkin emphasized.

The session "Shaping a New Platform for Global Growth" opened the official business block of the forum, and became a platform for a presentation of the final report of the Open Dialogue's results in the National Centre RUSSIA — an international discussion initiated by Russia in the spring of 2025. The report was prepared by the Center for Interdisciplinary Expertise "Third Rome", a partner of the National Centre RUSSIA.

The document includes analysis and proposals from more than 100 countries, as well as author's essays in four area: investing in people, in technology, connectivity, and the environment. These topics exactly, raised at the launch session, will become cross-cutting to all key events of the forum, from discussions of market transformation to the formation of new employment models and the development of human capital.