Switzerland partners with Sankalp to develop sustainable economies

The Global Sankalp Summit 2019 renews its focus with the theme “Accelerating Unlikely Alliances to build on Inclusive Africa”. The 2019 Sankalp Africa Summit is the one place where all these relevant stakeholders convene with the objective of building an enabling ecosystem for entrepreneurship.

The upcoming Summit looks forward to helping align stakeholders and provide a platform where unlikely alliances can take hold, and their collective impact can be amplified.

There is an imperative need to challenge the conventional notions that accompany many of the FCAS (Fragile and Conflict-Affected States) that have undergone severe economic, social and demographic stress. These economies today, however, present a unique opportunity to private sector actors to access these geographies, and through their focused interventions, revive potential opportunities for investments and sustainable development in these regions.

Through our sessions at the Sankalp Africa Summit 2019, we will aim to de-mystify some of these ‘Frontier Economies’, explain recent economic and political developments, and highlight some of the very real opportunities for investment in these regions.

Given the emphasis towards leveraging the underlying potential in these economies, the pace and scale of this development will only be possible when these economies are able to develop agile and robust models for delivering healthcare. While every country must attempt to augment its existing health system to accommodate all of its residents, countries in frontier markets face unique and complex challenges.

At Sankalp this year, we will deliberate and explore the collaborative synergies that can eliminate the barriers to accessing medical services and ameliorating the catastrophic financial burden caused by paying for the medical services that do exist. As conversations converge around Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and gain traction, SDC and Sankalp will highlight the pressing need for inclusion of health for all and financial protection in the Sustainable Development Goals which indeed will mark watershed moment in this healthcare discourse that benefits the people in the affected economies.

According to Ralf Heckner, Ambassador of Switzerland to Kenya, Burundi, Rwanda, Somalia and Uganda, “Switzerland is thrilled to be a Track Partner to the 6th edition of Sankalp. The Summit’s focus towards cultivating ‘Unlikely Alliances’ not only resonates with us, but also instils a sense of shared value and commitment towards finding solutions to some of the most complex and pressing challenges that exist. Our overarching work in Frontier Economies and towards Universal Health Coverage should help unwrap health “ecosystems” and clarify the roles and comparative advantages of private actors, including less conventional ones.

Our ambition is to pioneer and catalyze a shift in paradigms about “normality” in healthcare structure and delivery, and about how health systems can better be understood and strengthened. To achieve the ambitious ‘Agenda 2030’, we will require a radical departure from the ‘business as usual’ mentality and would need to embrace a more dynamic approach. An approach that combines innovation, frugality, and most importantly, a sense of entrepreneurship that aims to improve the lives of people without leaving anybody behind.

The 6th Sankalp Africa Summit will drive greater harmonization among global actors and build on conversations from the region, and will witness participation from over 1100 delegates representing 40 countries across 60 sessions, listening to over 120 speakers and representation from 25+ partners.