Ma, Dangote, Blankfein to Meet World Leaders at Bloomberg Event

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – As global chief executives wrestle with how to engage with government leaders, a group including Alibaba’s Jack Ma and Aliko Dangote, Africa’s richest man, will convene more than 100 fellow business leaders to meet with dozens of heads of state in September.

The Global Business Forum will take place in New York during the United Nations annual General Assembly meetings, Michael R. Bloomberg said today in a statement. Bloomberg is the founder of Bloomberg LP, the parent of Bloomberg News, and Bloomberg Philanthropies.

Bloomberg, who served as the 108th mayor of New York City, will host the Sept. 20 event in partnership with the Alibaba Group; Dangote Industries Ltd.; EXOR, the holding company controlled by the Agnelli family; the Mahindra Group; and MiSK, the philanthropic foundation of His Royal Highness Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman.

“Global trade and investment are the most powerful forces we have for reducing poverty and spreading opportunity –- but too often, business and government leaders don’t realize how they can help each other,” Bloomberg said in the statement. “The forum will be a great opportunity for heads of state and CEOs to speak directly with one another about ways they can work more closely together.”

The hosts plan to engage CEOs such as Softbank Group’s Masayoshi Son, Goldman Sachs Group’s Lloyd Blankfein and BlackRock’s Laurence Fink in on-stage conversations with heads of state, finance ministers and philanthropists.

Others set to speak at the event include UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, former U.S. President Bill Clinton, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, World Bank President Jim Kim and International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde.

Source: Bloomberg Business News