Dear Friends:

Today, more than 200 million people worldwide are unemployed. South Africa’s unemployment rates are among the highest in the world: 35% of people there are out of work, including 63% of the youth labor force. Rotary is responding to this challenge by leading initiatives to enhance economic and community development and creating opportunities for decent and productive work for all.

Join us in Cape Town, South Africa—The Fairest Cape in all the World—on 27 February for the 2016 Presidential Conference on Economic Development. Hosted by the Rotary districts of Southern Africa, this conference will focus on economic enablement by bringing together Rotary members, business leaders, and representatives from the public and private sectors to explore solutions to Southern Africa’s unemployment crisis by expanding job opportunities and entrepreneurship. This will be the third of a series of five Presidential Conferences highlighting Rotary’s areas of focus, which encompass some of the world’s most critical and widespread humanitarian needs.

The conference will feature engaging speakers who will share successful enterprise development models, and breakaway sessions focused on developing partnerships with governments, civil society organizations, NGOs, microfinance institutions, and corporations to create solutiondriven job programs. Attendees will have the opportunity to network with fellow leaders and take away new ideas and strategies to put into action. Visit the conference website, www.rotarycapetown2016.com, for details on the conference program and information on how to register.

If you are working locally or abroad to improve communities through economic development, or would like to learn how to do so, you will not want to miss this unique opportunity to join fellow leaders, exchange ideas, and take action. We hope to see you there!

Sincerely,

K.R. “Ravi” Ravindran President, Rotary International, 2015-16	Ray Klinginsmith Chair, The Rotary Foundation Trustees, 2015-16