The North-West Regional Assembly is hosting the first-ever North-West Economic Forum (NWEF) in Bamenda from July 12–13, 2025, under the stirring theme "from resilience to renaissance — strategies for the economic transformation of the North-West Region."
When Hilltopvoices visited on the eve of the forum, the grounds of the Regional Assembly pulsed with activity. Exhibition stands rose quickly, draped in banners. Media crews adjusted their live-stream setups. Professor Fru Angwafor III, President of the North-West Regional Executive Council, moved between strategy huddles with his team and the leadership of NOWEDA, the North-West Development Association.
The forum brings together a unique coalition of stakeholders, government ministers, investors, entrepreneurs, diaspora leaders, academics, and development partners all seeking a common goal: to forge a roadmap that shifts the region from survival to growth. With sessions spanning security, infrastructure, digital innovation, and youth employment, the forum hopes to produce not just ideas, but a working agenda with tangible goals over the next 12 months.
That such a forum is taking place in Bamenda, being the hotspot of the Anglophone crisis, is no small gesture. Organisers say the decision is intentional which is an assertion that rebuilding must begin even before perfect peace is achieved. Forum discussions will also tackle how to make the region safer for business, including strategies to downgrade its security level and re-open critical facilities like the Bamenda Airport.
Youth innovation and digital entrepreneurship are taking centre stage. A new Innovation Hub will be launched, and top regional startups will be recognised. There is also a deliberate attempt to engage the diaspora as active investors and ambassadors for a region on the rise.
The forum will close with the presentation of a shared economic roadmap, along with concrete commitments, partnership announcements, and a framework for follow-up.
By Hilltopvoices Newsroom
Photo credits: North West Regional Assembly Facebook Page
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