The Forum focused on the direction and fulfilment of the government’s several initiatives and the various strategies corporates need to adopt for an effective public policy and public affairs programme and engagement.

As always, PAFI engaged with stakeholders across key disciplines at this Forum to understand the different perspectives and views in a globally networked world, where policies and decisions in one region of the world could have an unpredicted bearing on another.

The Forum, over the last few years, has become the meeting ground for public policy and public affairs professionals, and is the flagship annual event of PAFI. It is a strong platform for interaction with Government officials, CEOs, media, think-tanks, and legislators in an informal setting. The 5th National Forum was designed to have more debates and dialogues and focus more on interactive panel discussions rather than formal speeches.

Some of the key issues and policies the Forum focused on included Ease of Doing Business, the Make in India initiative, the Economic Agenda of political parties for the 2019 Elections, emerging and disruptive technologies such as artificial intelligence and block chain, social media tools and their impact on industry and its advocacy plans.