(Brussels) The 6^th Business Forum taking place in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, marked the beginning of the week of the African Union-European Union summit, hosted by the Ivorian capital on November 29^th and 30^th. Today, executives, young businessmen and businesswomen, investors, innovative start-ups from the two continents are at work, reviewing “the areas in which the situation can be improved” by new investments, looking to “employment for young people and above all for women”, Andrus Ansip, deputy EU president for the digital single market, said in his opening address. Employment and sustainable growth will be “the key goals of the Summit”, the international cooperation commissioner Neven Mimica added, a summit at which “the EU will describe its new external investment plan” worth 3.4 billion euros to deliver 44 billion euros’ total investments. The EU delegation will be led by the president of the EU Commission, Jean-Claude Junker. “Our partnership is an investment in a shared future, a partnership between equals in which we support each other, help each other grow and make the world a safer, more stable and sustainable place to live in”, Junker stated the day before the event, which will be focussed on youth and development. Young people will submit “proposals to the European and African leaders” from the statement prepared at early October’s youth summit. Before the summit, a meeting will take place between European and African Ministers of Foreign Affairs tomorrow, November 28^th.