Overview of the Conference
On April 2, 2026, ESSEC Business School’s Africa Campus in Rabat hosted the African Conference on Tricontinental Dialogue, organized by the ESSEC Institute for Geopolitics & Business. This significant event revolved around the theme "Geopolitics Meets the Boardroom: African Businesses Navigating US–China Rivalry in a Fragmented World". It brought together a myriad of economic leaders, public policymakers, experts, and academic community members to dissect contemporary geopolitical issues and their implications for African enterprises.
In a global landscape characterized by substantial strategic realignments, the discussions highlighted the pivotal challenges and opportunities facing Africa, along with the necessary measures to bolster its economic sovereignty and resilience. Assia Bensalah Alaoui, a special ambassador for King Mohammed VI, opened the conference with a keynote speech emphasizing that uncertainty has become the only certainty for corporate leadership amid a polycrisis context.
Key Insights and Future Directions
Amine Bouabid, the CEO of Bank of Africa Group, underscored the continent's structural challenges, including stagnant industrial growth and rising debt levels. He called for enhanced regional economic integration and pointed out the critical role that pan-African banks play in financing industrialization. Yassir Zouaoui, Managing Partner at McKinsey & Company’s Casablanca office, shared a strategic roadmap for African economic leaders, stressing the importance of developing internal capabilities for assessing geopolitical risks.
The conference also featured contributions from prominent figures such as Prof. Hugues Levecq, the General Director and Deputy Dean of ESSEC Business School - Africa Campus, and Prof. Aurélien Colson, Co-director of the ESSEC Institute for Geopolitics & Business. Additionally, insights from Charles Thepaut, Deputy Mission Chief at the French Embassy in Morocco, Christine Cassiers, Head of Political, Press, and Information Section at the EU Delegation in Morocco, and Thomas Friang, Executive Director of the ESSEC Institute for Geopolitics & Business, enriched the dialogue.
This conference is part of the broader Tricontinental Dialogue initiative undertaken by the ESSEC Institute for Geopolitics & Business, aimed at fostering exchanges between Africa, Europe, and Asia on significant geo-economic challenges. The next phase of the Tricontinental Dialogue is set to take place on June 10, 2026, in Singapore, further extending the international scope of this initiative.
As reported by leseco.ma.
