Ebène, Mauritius, October 13: Mauritius will host the Africa Kaizen Annual Conference (AKAC) 2026 on October 26 and 27 at The Ravenala Attitude Hotel, Balaclava, which will bring under one roof productivity institutions, policymakers, business leaders, Kaizen practitioners and development partners from across Africa and beyond.
AKAC is the flagship annual event of the Africa Kaizen Initiative (AKI), a joint platform of the African Union Development Agency-NEPAD (AUDA-NEPAD) and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). The Pan-African Productivity Association (PAPA) joins as co-organiser alongside the Government of Mauritius, represented by the Ministry of Industry, SME and Cooperatives and the National Productivity and Competitiveness Council (NPCC).
AKAC 2026 marks the tenth anniversary of the AKI, which, since 2017, has built the capacity of productivity organisations, supported Kaizen implementation in enterprises and promoted peer learning across the continent through AKAC and the Africa Kaizen Award (AKA). This anniversary edition will celebrate that journey and open a new phase for the initiative beyond 2027.
The conference is being held under the theme “Sustainable Kaizen for a Competitive and Prosperous Africa,” with the sub-theme “Advancing productivity and quality for resilient, inclusive and green growth.”
Each year, AKAC gives African countries a unique platform to compare results, share knowledge, and learn, where it turns individual success stories into continental knowledge, coming at a critical moment for the continent in 2026, when economies must create jobs for a fast-growing young population, compete in an integrating continental market under the African Continental Free Trade Area, respond to climate change and global sustainability standards, and adapt to supply chain disruptions and rapid advances in artificial intelligence.
In line with this, productivity is no longer a narrow concern of individual firms. It is the foundation on which Africa’s industrialisation, competitiveness and inclusive growth will be built.
Sustainable Kaizen offers a practical answer. Building on the core principles of continuous improvement and respect for people, it links productivity gains with resource efficiency, decent work and resilience to shocks. It shows that enterprises can do more with less, improve working conditions and reduce their environmental footprint at the same time.
As a Small Island Developing State and an early adopter of Kaizen since 2001, Mauritius brings its own experience of how productivity improvement, institutional reform and sustainability can reinforce one another.
Over two days, four high-level panels will examine the future of productivity in Africa. Day One will serve as an opportunity to present Sustainable Kaizen as Africa’s new competitiveness model. On Day 2, it will look at how to make the shift from isolated practice to a lasting culture of continuous improvement across the continent. While “Kaizen 4.0,” on Day 3 will explore how technology and innovation are reshaping productivity and quality, with country experiences from Mauritius, South Africa, Tunisia and Ethiopia. The fourth Day will celebrate ten years of the AKI and reflect on its future, followed by an interactive stakeholder consultation on the transition of the initiative beyond 2027.
