African Think Tank Summit

3-5 February in Pretoria, South Africa. The Think Tank Summit was held under the University of Pennsylvania’s Think Tank and Civil Societies Program (TTCSP), with the aim to provide a regional forum to engage and discuss challenging policy and organizational issues facing think tanks in Africa. 

The summit was jointly organized by the African Capacity Building Foundation (ACBF), Institute for Security Studies (ISS) and the University of Pennsylvania. FANRPAN participated in the inaugural African Think Tank Summit.

The summit focused on the policy level and the institutional issues. On the policy level, focus was on the national and regional policies, programs and strategies that address the current and emerging security threats for the continent and opportunities for Africa to become a major global trade and investment partner. Institutional issues focused on the long-term sustainability of think tanks and the sharing of best practices for research and resource mobilization.

It is hoped that the First African Think Tank Summit will establish learning alliances between African and global think tanks including the development of a ranking baseline which ACBF supported Think-tanks can utilize to improve performance and maximize impact.

FANRPAN was represented by Mr Lufingo Mwamakamba, Protocol and Partnerships Manager.