Amponsah Participates in African Forum

For Immediate Release
November 13, 2001

Greensboro, NC: Dr. William A. Amponsah of North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, was an invited participant in the Africa Knowledge Networks Forum/African Development Forum (AKNF/ADF).

The AKNF/ADF met in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia from October 16-19, 2001.

Amponsah, an associate professor in A&T’s Department of Agribusiness, Applied Economics and Agriscience Education, who also works with A&T’s International Trade Center, was invited by the Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission.

While there, he presented a paper, “African Regional Integration: A Pre-Condition Toward Multilateral Liberalization,” and served as chairperson during the deliberative session of the committee to review the potential framework and protocol for the emerging African economic and monetary union.

“Following the failed 1999 meeting of the World Trade Organization in Seattle, multilateral trade and investment negotiations have hit a stalemate,” said Amponsah. “For this reason, governments all over the world have been focusing on alternative regional trade and investment integration. In pursuit of that objective, the goal of the forum was to review technical papers on ‘Defining Priorities for Regional Integration in Africa,’ the theme of ADF 2001, scheduled to take place late this year.”

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For more information, please contact Dr. William Amponsah, NC A&T School of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, (336) 334-7056.