Latest news with #AfDB
Maroc
19 hours ago
- Business
- Maroc
Under HM the King's Leadership, Morocco Establishes Itself as Emerging Economic Power
The major strides made by Morocco under the leadership of His Majesty King Mohammed VI have enabled the Kingdom to enhance its international attractiveness and establish itself as an emerging economic power, said African Development Bank (AfDB) President Akinwumi Adesina. Thanks to its political stability and growing appeal, Morocco has succeeded in effectively mobilizing capital by diversifying its sources of financing, Adesina told MAP on the occasion of the celebration of the Throne Day. This positive momentum, he noted, has resulted in a significant increase in foreign direct investment (FDI), a sustained development of the capital markets, and greater reliance on international financing and public-private partnerships. He further recalled that over the past two decades, Morocco's gross domestic product (GDP) has doubled, alongside the development of world-class infrastructure that reflects the Kingdom's bold ambitions. In this regard, he cited landmark projects such as the Noor Ouarzazate solar complex, one of the largest in the world, the strategic ports of Tanger Med and Nador West Med, both major intercontinental maritime hubs, as well as Africa's only high-speed rail line. These achievements, he said, illustrate Morocco's emerging trajectory. Adesina also emphasized that substantial investments have been strategically directed toward high-potential sectors such as the automotive industry, digital economy, and renewable energy. These efforts have contributed to boosting the competitiveness of Moroccan companies, accelerating the diversification of national production, and multiplying the levers for sustainable growth across the Kingdom. MAP:17 July 2025
Zawya
21 hours ago
- Business
- Zawya
Africa's financial sovereignty: Mobilizing institutional capital for development and resilience
As global capital flows evolve and development assistance dwindles, Africa finds itself at a critical point. On 28 May, during the African Development Bank Group's 2025 Annual Meetings ( senior leaders, policymakers and financial experts gathered to chart a new course for the continent's financial future – one based on mobilizing and deploying African resources and ingenuity. Organized by the Bank Group's Resource Mobilization and Partnerships Department, in collaboration with the Bank's Making Finance Work for Africa initiative, this side event brought together leading African experts in a conversation moderated by Victor Oladokun, Senior Advisor to the President of the African Development Bank Group for Communication and Stakeholder Engagement. With a 10 percent decline in development assistance and a 12 percent drop in foreign direct investment to USD 40 billion {in what period, and what's the source of the data?}, the urgency of mobilizing domestic resources is pressing. The continent faces an annual infrastructure funding gap of between USD 68 billion and USD 108 billion, while attracting only 2 percent of global investment in this sector {Source?}. "The real question is not whether the capital exists – it does. The question is how to mobilize it on a large scale for productive, high-impact investments," said Solomon Quaynor, the African Development Bank Group's Vice-President for Private Sector, Infrastructure&Industrialization. He added, "Africa is not poor. Our institutional investors – pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, insurance companies, and even central banks – together manage more than USD 2.1 trillion in assets. If just 5 percent of these funds were directed towards infrastructure and the private sector, it would unlock more than USD 100 billion in long-term capital for the continent." Partnerships and innovation The event highlighted some innovative African-led models for mobilizing institutional capital. For example, InfraCredit Nigeria, a pioneering credit enhancement institution, has secured more than USD 300 million in long-term financing in local currency for infrastructure projects. "The real risk associated with infrastructure assets is often overestimated. We have not recorded any losses on a portfolio of more than 20 projects in 12 sectors in eight years," said Chinua Azubike, CEO of InfraCredit. Tafara Ethiopis, Vice President of the International Finance Corporation (IFC, the World Bank's private-sector arm) for Africa, emphasized the need to strengthen the bankability of projects through more effective risk-sharing mechanisms. "It is essential to calibrate the distribution of risks and benefits between the public and private sectors properly to make projects bankable," he said. Speakers also identified obstacles to mobilizing institutional capital and proposed solutions. Boitumelo Mosako, CEO of the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA), highlighted the central role of good governance and rigorous project preparation in lowering risk and improving investor confidence. The Director General of Nigeria's Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Timi Agama, stressed the importance of building trust through regulatory reforms, investor protection and financial education. Denis Charles Kouassi, CEO of Côte d'Ivoire's National Social Security Fund, underscored the importance of aligning pension funds with national development priorities, saying, " All the income we generate is reinvested directly into the national economy to finance our services and boost growth." A call for collective action The Resource Mobilization and Partnerships Department of the African Development Bank Group is leading several initiatives aimed at mobilizing African institutional capital, including through instruments such as the Capital Markets Development Trust Fund, and strategic partnerships with regional and global stakeholders. 'Yes, we need governance and accountability. But as Africans, we also need to learn to trust each other,' said Mosako. "The moment calls for vision. It also calls for innovation. And above all, it calls for action,' Quaynor affirmed, in his concluding remarks. 'Let us pool our capital, our ideas, and our will, to build an Africa where infrastructure becomes a lever for prosperity, not a drag on it." Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Development Bank Group (AfDB). To view photos from this session, click here ( About the African Development Bank Group: The African Development Bank Group is Africa's leading development finance institution. It comprises three distinct entities: the African Development Bank (AfDB), the African Development Fund (ADF) and the Nigeria Trust Fund (NTF). Represented in 41 African countries, with an external office in Japan, the Bank contributes to the economic development and social progress of its 54 regional member countries. For more information:
Zawya
a day ago
- Business
- Zawya
Financing Africa's Minerals: Momentum Builds Ahead of African Mining Week (AMW) 2025
International finance institutions are playing an increasingly pivotal role in Africa's mining sector, providing essential capital and technical support to unlock the continent's vast mineral potential. Last month, Angola became a sovereign shareholder in the Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) through a $184.8 million equity investment. This milestone builds on over $1 billion in AFC financing that Angola has already received, including for the Lobito Corridor – an integrated logistics project connecting Angola, Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Institutions such as the International Finance Corporation (IFC), African Development Bank (AfDB) and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (ERBD) are actively funding mining projects throughout the continent. As such, the upcoming African Mining Week (AMW) – Africa's premier gathering for mining stakeholders, scheduled for October 1-3, 2025, in Cape Town – will showcase strategic moves by African mineral-rich countries to enhance cooperation with global financiers. A dedicated panel titled The Investor Perspective – Financing Africa's Mineral Industrialization will discuss the investment landscape for African mineral industrialization. Algeria officially joined the New Development Bank – a multilateral institution founded by BRICS countries – in May this year, enhancing the country's access to capital and technical support for its oil, gas and mineral industries. That same month, Benin, Ivory Coast – one of Africa's largest gold producers – and Nigeria were designated as recipient countries by the EBRD, broadening their access to energy and mining project funding. Meanwhile, Ghana – Africa's largest gold producer – recently joined Nigeria and Angola in completing their capital contributions to the forthcoming Africa Energy Bank. Spearheaded by the African Petroleum Producers Organization and African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), the bank will serve as a dedicated financing institution for African extractive sector projects. In March 2025, Somalia also became the 53rd member of Afreximbank, a move expected to unlock new financing channels for the country's gold mining and trade-related developments. In 2024, the Ivory Coast and Botswana – the world's largest diamond producer – joined the AFC as sovereign shareholders, while Libya became the 53rd member of Afreximbank. In line with growing efforts to align financial innovation with mineral sector development, the AfDB approved a $150 million senior loan to Mauritania's state-owned mining firm, Société Nationale Industrielle et Minière (SNIM). The funding supports a $467 million logistics expansion program aimed at doubling SNIM's iron ore railway transport capacity by 2030 and scaling up production of higher value-added products like iron ore pellets. The project integrates renewable energy through the construction of a 12 MW solar plant and includes climate resilience measures backed by the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program. Amidst these developments, AMW connects African policymakers with global investors to strengthen existing and forge new investment partnerships aimed at unlocking the continents full potential of its extractive sector. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Energy Capital&Power.
Zawya
3 days ago
- Business
- Zawya
World Youth Skills Day: African Development Bank to introduce systems reforms to prioritize investing in Africa's youth
The African Development Bank ( in partnership with the International Labour Organization, has launched a transformative system to mainstream youth employment, skills development, and entrepreneurship across its investments. The approach, called the Youth, Jobs and Skills Marker System, is aligned with the Bank's latest Ten-Year Strategy, which places Africa's young people at the center of development efforts to maximize the impact of every dollar invested, turning demographics into a dividend. The Marker System ensures that Bank projects spanning diverse sectors, such as agriculture, transport, energy, water, and education, systematically incorporate components that enhance youth employability, foster entrepreneurship, and build market-relevant skills. 'The Youth, Jobs and Skills Marker System is about ensuring Africa's young people have a real say and active role in building sustainable economies and creating jobs - not as passive recipients of youth programs,' said Dr. Beth Dunford, the Bank's Vice President for Agriculture, Human and Social Development. 'This transformation of Bank practices and systems is a step toward making sure our investments have a positive impact on Africa's young women and men.' The integrated system has three focus areas: Youth: Supporting youth-led micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises through targeted investments and operational integration. Skills: Expanding access to practical, market-driven training and apprenticeships to enhance career prospects. Jobs: Ensuring Bank-funded projects create sustainable job opportunities, particularly by developing youth skills for employability and the promotion of youth-led businesses in priority value chains. Each year, around 10 to 12 million young Africans enter the labor market, which offers only three million formal jobs annually. The Bank will prioritize youth entrepreneurship and mobilize private sector partnerships to strengthen industry-oriented skills training as well as job creation over the coming decade. '[This initiative] is very important because it allows us to significantly contribute to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal #8 that includes decent work for all,' said Peter van Rooij, Director of Multilateral Partnerships and Development Cooperation at the International Labour Organization. 'It also allows the International Labour Organization to influence the Bank's work, to support their lending that is more geared toward more job creation and better jobs in a sustainable way.' The Youth, Jobs and Skills Marker System is modeled on the success of the Bank's Gender Marker System and its online dashboard, which categorize Bank projects based on their contribution to gender equality and women's empowerment. Similarly, the new system will feature an online platform enabling Bank staff and consultants to access real-time data for preparing country strategy papers, mid-term reviews, annual reports, project supervision, and reporting on youth-related skills, businesses and jobs outcomes. The Bank has just launched a pilot version of the Youth, Jobs and Skills Marker System in readiness for the full implementation in 2026. This system will enhance data tracking, improve estimates of youth skills attainment and employment, strengthen labor market information systems, and support policymakers in making evidence-based decisions that drive meaningful change. The International Labour Organization provided technical support for the system's development with financial support from the Bank's Youth Entrepreneurship and Innovation Multi-Donor Trust Fund. The Youth, Jobs and Skills Marker System is the first deliberate action of its kind developed by a development finance institution worldwide. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Development Bank Group (AfDB). To learn more about the Youth, Jobs and Skills Marker System, watch this video: Media Contact: Alphonso Van Marsh Chief Digital Content and Events Officer media@
Zawya
08-07-2025
- Business
- Zawya
AfDB awards South Africa $1mln grant to boost green jobs
South Africa is facing a growing youth unemployment crisis. But developing its green economy may be a way out. Recently, the African Development Bank (AfDB) awarded South Africa's National Business Initiative (NBI) a $1m grant to establish a skills ecosystem that will provide the country's young people with emerging job opportunities in the green economy. Sustainable job creation The funding will support the country's Just Energy Transition Skilling for Employment Programme (JET SEP), led by the National Business Initiative in partnership with the management consultancy Boston Consulting Group. The initiative coordinates private sector efforts to prepare the workforce for the energy transition, in tandem with the government's JET Skilling Implementation Plan, focused on inclusive workforce development and sustainable job creation. Specifically, the grant will finance the programme's first phase, including feasibility studies for the design of skills development zones and capacity building within the public technical and vocational education and training system. Skills development zones will anchor the delivery of inclusive skills and foster local economic growth during the country's just-energy transition. Launched in 2024 and endorsed by the JET Project Management Unit under the presidency of the Government of South Africa, JET SEP has garnered support from over 30 influential South African CEOs, public sector leaders, and civil society leaders in the past year. Investing in energy The grant builds on the African Development Bank's significant investment in South Africa's energy sector. Since 2007, the bank has invested $3.4bn to support energy infrastructure, including renewable energy. The current grant will support the government's efforts to identify the skills needed for the sector, with a particular focus on renewable energy. Shameela Soobramoney, CEO of the National Business Initiative, said: 'This grant from the African Development Bank is a critical step toward turning vision into action, strengthening the national skills system, and ensuring that all South Africans are equipped to seize new opportunities in the green economy. 'We are proud to continue working alongside our partners and stakeholders to build an inclusive future-ready workforce and to stimulate local economies in a way that leaves no one behind.'
