IBM Launches Global Collaboration Efforts to Spur Economic Development in Africa

IBM Launches Global Collaboration Efforts to Spur Economic Development in Africa

IBM (NYSE: IBM) today launched its first-ever public “ThinkPlace Challenge,” a three-week open forum designed to foster global collaboration on innovation opportunities and economic development issues facing the African continent.

The top ideas generated through the ThinkPlace Challenge will help shape the agenda for IBM’s upcoming Global Innovation Outlook (GIO) focus on Africa, and provide longer-term input for IBM’s World Development Initiative (WDI).

The GIO brings together more than 150 global thought leaders for a series of conferences in seven major markets around the world. These GIO sessions, comprising leaders in business, government, academia, NGOs and venture capital, are designed to surface actionable policy issues, investment strategies, business models and technology priorities related to innovation and economic development in the region. In a related effort, IBM recently launched the WDI to advance sustainable, scalable technology solutions that will foster business development in emerging markets at the so-called “base of the pyramid.”

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