Sierra Leone's President Julius Maada Bio, whose country is the guest of honor, speaks during the opening session of the sixth International Africa Development Forum (FIAD) in Casablanca, Morocco, on March 14, 2019. The sixth FIAD kicked off Thursday in the Moroccan city of Casablanca under the theme "when East meets West." Organized by the Moroccan pan-African investment fund Al Mada, the two-day meeting is a platform for dialogue, investment promotion and intra-African trade. (Xinhua/Chadi)
RABAT, March 14 (Xinhua) -- The sixth International Africa Development Forum (FIAD) kicked off Thursday in the Moroccan city of Casablanca under the theme "when East meets West."
The opening of the forum was chaired by Sierra Leone's President Julius Maada Bio, whose country is the guest of honor.
Speaking at the opening session, the Sierra Leone's president stressed that Africa has enormous potential with a population of about one billion people and diverse natural resources, but a great deal of the potential remains unexploited.
He added that Africa offers huge opportunities of African investors in various sectors such as agri-food, trade and renewable energy.
Bio also underlined the need for filling the infrastructure gap, and meeting the complex challenges of promoting political stability and fighting corruption.
Organized by the Moroccan pan-African investment fund Al Mada, the two-day meeting is a platform for dialogue, investment promotion and intra-African trade.
It is meant to bring together and connect 2,000 economic operators from 34 African countries.
