At the just concluded African Investment Forum (AIF) Market Days 2024, investors committed a total of $29.2 billion in new investments. These investment commitments span 37 development projects and is spread across different African countries. During the forum, government officials, investors, project developers, and business tycoons engaged in 41 boardroom discussions with projects varying from transport, power, energy, agribusiness, industry, mining, pharmaceuticals, private equity, tourism, urban infrastructure, water management and water and sanitation. ALSO READ: Africa is prime investment destination for energy transition – AfDB’s Adesina Akinwumi Adesina, President of the African Development Bank (AfDB) and Chair of the AIF, said the level of rigor for projects has increased, in terms of project readiness, with greater focus on investment-ready projects, an enhancement from the previous editions of the Forum. “The waves of the Africa Investment Forum are cascading investment ripples from Africa to all parts of the world...I am proud that we have achieved for Africa,” he said, adding that Africa is becoming a global investment movement for Africa. For instance, he said, state representatives sought to mobilise $975 million for Nigeria's Special Agro-Processing Zone, but the boardroom sessions garnered $4.8 billion. Similarly, projects initiated by Morocco and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) drew investor interests higher than initially targeted. The AfDB hosts the forum as part of a collective initiative that includes the African Export-Import Bank, Africa50, Africa Finance Corporation, Development Bank of Southern Africa, European Investment Bank, Islamic Development Bank, and Trade and Development Bank. This year’s forum themed “Leveraging Innovative Partnerships for Scale,” convened to drive investments, accelerate growth, move forward successful projects with continuity, and to forge new alliances for stability and resilience of African economies. Nadia Fettah Alaoui, Morocco’s Minister of Economy and Finance, said the AIF is a major catalyst and a unique platform for investment and for accelerating the transformation of Africa. She appealed to the African diaspora noting that there are good projects for investment and as well money to finance their projects. Admassu Tadesse, President and Managing Director of Trade and Development Bank Group, said that the projects go through a structured process that has shaped the build-up to the Market Days, noting that the efforts have been towards the task of developing bankable projects to perceived market risks and cost of capital, among others.
