October 16, 2025
Rome, Italy
Intangible Capital for Africa’s Growth: Building Data, Shaping Policy Conference
The World Bank Group Institute for Economic Development, the World Bank’s Center for Development Data (C4D2), Luiss Business School, and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) are pleased to invite you to the conference "Intangible Capital for Africa’s Growth: Building Data, Shaping Policy," which will focus on the Global INTAN Invest initiative, a collaborative effort to improve the measurement of intangible investment across economies.
As growth increasingly relies on technological progress and knowledge-based assets, intangible capital has become central to productivity and competitiveness. However, many countries still face significant data gaps that hinder effective policymaking. The Global INTAN Invest project addresses these challenges by producing harmonized statistics on intangible investment and by supporting capacity building in national statistical systems.
The conference will highlight:
- Global INTAN Invest project’s objectives, main achievements, and future directions, with a particular focus on policy relevance
- Findings from the 2025 World Intangible Investment Highlights (WIIH) report
- A special focus on Africa, featuring country case studies that will illustrate both challenges and opportunities for empowering national statistical offices
Join us online for a timely and engaging discussion on how better data and collaboration can help unlock the full potential of intangible capital for inclusive growth.
All times listed below are in Central European Time (CET).
| Conference Program | |
| 15:30 | Opening Remarks Mr. Gero Carletto, DEC-GI |
| 15:35 | Introductory Remarks Mr. Sacha Wunsch-Vincent, WIPO |
| 15:40 | Presentation: Global INTAN Project, World Intangible Investment Highlights and Africa Focus Prof. Cecilia Jona-Lasinio, LUISS Business School |
| 16:05 | Q&A Session |
| 16:10 | Panel Discussion: Intangible Investment and Development: Bridging Global Insights and Africa’s Policy Priorities The panel will explore the role of intangible investment in driving growth and job creation, while reflecting on the different trajectories of advanced and developing economies. It will address persistent measurement challenges, highlight the importance of the initiative for the African context, and discuss policy. Participants:
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| 17:10 | Final Q&A Session |
| 17:25 | Closing Remarks |
Luiss Business School and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) collaborate in the Global INTAN Invest initiative, which seeks to improve the measurement of intangible investment across economies. As growth increasingly relies on technological progress and knowledge-based assets, intangible capital has become central to productivity and competitiveness. However, effective policies require reliable and comparable data, which remain limited in many parts of the world.
The Global INTAN Invest project responds to this challenge by developing harmonized statistics on intangible investment and by supporting capacity building in national statistical systems. At this outreach conference, Luiss Business School and WIPO will present the project’s objectives, main achievements, and future directions, with a particular focus on policy relevance. The conference will feature the findings of the 2025 World Intangible Investment Highlights (WIIH) report, which provides new evidence on global trends. Special attention will be devoted to data collection in Africa, where statistical systems often face constraints. Selected country cases will illustrate both challenges and opportunities, underlining the importance of empowering national statistical offices.
Through this dialogue, Luiss Business School and WIPO aim to foster international cooperation and equip policymakers with the evidence needed to design strategies that fully leverage intangible investment for inclusive and sustainable growth.
Rome is home to one of the branches of the Institute for Economic Development and the World Bank’s Center for Development Data (C4D2), both part of a growing World Bank Group presence in the city. The Institute’s mission is to deliver actionable reforms that support firm growth and job creation in Africa. Achieving these goals requires policies that are firmly grounded in robust, high-quality data systems—an area where C4D2 is dedicated to strengthening national capacity and supporting evidence-based policymaking, with a particular focus on Africa.
Hosting this event provides an opportunity for open dialogue with WIPO and the Luiss Business School Global INTAN Invest, aimed at improving the measurement and understanding of intangible investment. This exchange is particularly important for Africa, where enhanced data and harmonized methodologies can empower national statistical offices, inform policy innovation, and help unlock the potential of intangible capital for inclusive growth.
