LONDON - In his keynote address at the Sustainable Industrialization in Africa conference at the United Kingdom Parliament, UNIDO Director General Gerd Müller highlighted the need for massive investment in agribusiness and local value addition in the fight against hunger, for the production of sustainable energy in Africa for Africa, and for job creation for the young population.

Following welcoming remarks by Andrew Mitchell MP, the United Kingdom Minister of State for Development and Africa, Müller called for global solidarity and massive investments in Africa. He said UNIDO is a partner in all African countries, concentrating on Sustainable Development Goal 9: sustainable industrialization, innovation and infrastructure, adding, “UNIDO is the implementing agency, mobilizing knowledge and technology partnerships and investment.”

He concluded by saying, “Africa is the continent of the future: it is a chance and a challenge for Europe and the United Kingdom.”

The speech was delivered at the opening of a conference bringing together business leaders, state and United Nations representatives, journalists and academics. It was organized by the London School of Economics (LSE) Firoz Lalji Institute for Africa, in partnership with ARISE Integrated Industrial Platforms (ARISE IIP), the Royal African Society/Africa All-Party Parliamentary Group, and the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association United Kingdom.

The conference saw the presentation of an LSE white paper on the changing modalities of sustainable industrial development in Africa and the crucial role of industrial policy, as well as the launch of a new parliamentary policy inquiry into UK-African Partnerships for Just Energy Transitions.

While in London, Gerd Müller also held bilateral talks with Andrew Mitchell, Minister of State for Development and Africa. The two discussed the recently agreed ‘Accelerate-to-Demonstrate’ (A2D) Facility, a £65m programme funded by the Government of the United Kingdom to be implemented in partnership with UNIDO.

The programme, which will accelerate the energy transition in developing countries and promote clean technologies and investment, will bring the United Kingdom closer to UNIDO while addressing some of the most pressing development issues worldwide.