The EU-Mediterranean and African Network for Economic Studies (EMANES) organised its Annual Conference 2024 “Navigating New Frontiers: Digitalization, Labor Markets and Societal Transformation in Europe, the Mediterranean and Africa” which took place at EMEA HQs at Sant Pau Art Nouveau Site, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, on 11-13 December 2024.
The EMANES Annual Conference 2024 was organized by EMEA in collaboration with CEPS, and brought together EMANES Researchers and members, international economists, policy experts and policy makers.
Day 1 – 11 December 2023
The first day of the conference opened with a welcome speech by EMEA President and EMANES Director Prof. Rym Ayadi. She highlighted that “Collaboration across borders and disciplines is the key to navigating new frontiers in research. Together, we can harness digitalization and societal transformation to create a future that is inclusive, resilient, and prosperous for all.”
Prof. Ayadi also underlined for this year’s conference 50 papers were received from 36 countries at the call for papers. 17 papers were accepted after the review of EMANES scientific committee.
Following this, H.E. Dr. Raja Almarzoqi Albqami, Chief Economic Advisor at Ministry of Economy and Planning – MEPsaudi and General Coordinator and GCC Chief Negotiation at The Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC) & EMEA Advisor, delivered the welcome speech “Navigating New Frontiers: Digitalization, Labor Markets and Societal Transformation in Europe, the Mediterranean and Africa.
The keynote speech at the opening of the EMANES Annual Conference 2024 was delivered by Prof. Ricardo Hausmann, Founder and Director of Harvard’s Growth Lab and the Rafik Hariri Professor of the Practice of International Political Economy at Harvard Kennedy School, followed by a discussion on his presentation “The Puzzle about Technology”.
The 1st day of the Conference included 1 Academic Session:
- Academic Session 1: “Finance and Digitalization” where 3 papers were presented and discussed. The session was chaired by Dr. Sandra Challita, Emlyon Business School and EMEA.
The 1st day closed with the Case Study session “Digital Transformation in the Informal Economy: The WOW Platform as a Catalyst for Socio-Economic Development”. This session explored the transformative potential of the WOW Platform, a pioneering digital solution designed to formalize and empower South Africa’s minibus taxi industry.
Link to the agenda of the 1st day of the EMANES AC 2024
Day 2 – 12 December 2023
The 2nd Day of the EMANES Annual Conference 2024 started with a keynote speech by H.E. Hala H. Elsaid, Economic Advisor to the President, Arab Republic of Egypt, Former Minister of Planning and Economic Development, Egypt. After her speech H.E. Dr Hala H. Elsaid discussed on issues related to AI and Brain Capital with the President of EMEA and Director of EMANES, Prof. Rym Ayadi.
The 2nd day of the conference also included the Special Session: “Making sense of the five critical pillars: A manifesto for economics renaissance”, presented by Prof. Giovanni Ferri, Universita LUMSA, and EMEA Advisor and discussed with EMEA President Prof. Rym Ayadi and Dr. Carlo Sessa, EMEA Senior Researcher and Member of the EMEA Executive Board.
The 2nd day of the Conference included 3 Academic Session:
- Academic Session 2: “Sustainable Growth” where 3 papers were presented and discussed. The session was chaired by Dr. Doriana Cucinelli, University of Parma and EMEA
- Academic Session 3: “Energy transition” where 2 papers were presented and discussed. The session was chaired by Dr. Yeganeh Forouheshfar, EMEA
- Academic Session 4: “Labor Market and Digitalization” where 3 papers were presented and discussed. The session was chaired by Prof. Najat El Mekkaoui, Paris Dauphine University and EMEA
The 2nd day closed with EMANES Annual Conference 2024 Policy Session ” Digitalization Skills and the Future of Labour Market in Europe, the Mediterranean, and Africa: Exploring Mobility and Opportunities”.
The session discussed the impact of digitalization on the labor markets in Europe, the Mediterranean, and Africa, explored the role of digital skills in enhancing mobility across these regions, and proposed policy measures that can facilitate cross-regional mobility and cooperation in the digital economy.
Moderator: Dr. Cinzia Alcidi – Senior Research Fellow, Head of the Economic Policy and Jobs & Skills Unit at CEPS (Centre for European Policy Studies); Member of the EMEA Executive Board
Panel
- Charles Crevier – Manager of the Social Protection, Governance and Tripartism Programme at the International Training Centre of the International Labour Organization
- Ekkehard Ernst – Chief Macro-economist at the International Labour Organization; President and Co-founder Geneva Macro Labs; EMEA Advisor
- Jorge Miguel Bravo, Universidade Nova de Lisboa & Universite Paris Dauphine – PSL and BRU-ISCTE
- Ummunah Bardak – Senior specialist on labour market and migration at the European Training Foundation
- Ines Duarte, Project Manager – Climate Finance Energy and Climate Action Division, Union for the Mediterranean
- Hon. Nikolle Camaj – Vice President of the Parliament of Montenegro, Representative of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean, Montenegro delegation
Link to the agenda of the 2nd day of the EMANES AC 2024
Day 3 – 13 December 2023
On the 3d day of the Conference, Dr. Andrea Renda, Director of Research at CEPS, delivered the Policy Keynote Speech “Place-based Transformation and Industrial Policy”. The speech was followed by a discission with the conference participants.
Furthermore, on the 3d day of the EMANES Annual Conference 2024, Nektar Baziotis, AI Officer of EMEA & CEO of ICARUS AI E-Learning, presented the Case Study Session: “The impact of AI in EDTech: The era of objective knowledge – the ICARUS way”.
Finally, Dr. Agustin Ibanez, Director – Latin American Brain Health Institute (BrainLat UAI), Senior Atlantic Fellow Global Brain Health Institute (GBHI) presented the EMANES Annual Conference 2024 Guest Session “Research on Neuro-Science and AI”.
The 2nd day of the Conference included 3 Academic Session:
- Academic Session 5: “Financial Inclusion” where 3 papers were presented and discussed. The session was chaired by Dr. Carlo Sessa, Carlo Sessa, Senior Researcher and Member of the EMEA Executive Board
- Academic Session 6: “Trade and Global Value Chains” where 3 papers were presented and discussed. The session was chaired by Prof. Raul Ramos, University of Barcelona
Closing the EMANES Annual Conference 2024, Prof. Rym Ayadi, EMEA President and EAMNES, underlined: “To navigate the new frontiers of digitalization and societal transformation, we must prioritize inclusivity, invest in brain capital, and foster cross-regional collaboration and collective intelligence. The way forward lies in bridging divides—digital, economic, and social—to ensure that innovation drives equitable and sustainable progress for all.”
The EMANES Annual Conference 2023 finished with the announcement of the Best Paper Awards by Prof. Rym Ayadi. The winning papers were:
- Paper 1: “Financial well-being, bank de-branching and digital financial literacy: Insights from Italian provinces” – Authors: Donatella Baiardi, Paola Bongini Universita degli Studi di Milano-Bicocca, Doriana Cucinelli Universita degli Studi di Parma and EMEA, Emanuela E. Rinaldi
- Paper 2: “Artificial intelligence for environmental performance: the roles of energy transition and digital economy” – Authors: Sana SLIMANI, Anis el Omri, Sami Ben Jabeur, ESDES Business School
- Paper 3: “The Gender Divide in Digital Financial Inclusion: Lessons from Palestine” – Author: Rabeh Morrar, Palestine Economic Policy Research Institute (MAS)
The awarded papers will receive 2,000 Euros of research budget in order to continue their research under these topics. The award is funded by the Euro-Mediterranean Economists Association – EMEA.
Link to the agenda of the 3rd day of the EMANES AC 2024
Videos of the conference are available at https://conference2024.emnes.org/
For more photos pls visit the EMANES 2024 gallery
It should be noted that on 10 December 2024, EMEA and EMANES, in collaboration with Neuro-Policy at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, the Brain Capital Alliance, and the Brain Economy Hub organised the webinar “Harnessing the simultaneous booms of AI and neurotechnology: How the brain economy can guide us toward global flourishing” as a Pre-Conference activity for the EMANES Annual Conference 2024.
For more info please see: EMANES Pre-conference 2024 Webinar “Harnessing the simultaneous booms of AI and neurotechnology” completed successfully
