Continue Following the successful conclusion of the 17th replenishment of the African Development Fund (ADF-17), which raised $11 billion for Africa’s most vulnerable countries, the African Development Bank (AfDB) Group, in partnership with the UK Government, convened global investors and private sector leaders in London to launch a new phase of private capital mobilization for the continent’s development.
The first African Private Capital Mobilization Day, held on 17 December at Lancaster House, brought together more than 150 senior decision makers from private equity firms, sovereign wealth funds, pension funds, insurance companies, charities, development finance institutions and export credit agencies. The event marked a decisive shift from dialogue to implementation and demonstrated a concerted effort to unlock Africa’s untapped investment potential.
The event, hosted by AfDB in partnership with UK agencies including the Foreign Office, Commonwealth Development Office, UK Export Finance and UK International Investment, reflected a shared ambition to increase the flow of private capital into African economies.
In his opening remarks, AfDB President Dr. Sidi Ould Tarr said the initiative is a natural continuation of the ADF-17 process and an important step towards addressing Africa’s estimated annual development financing gap of $402 billion.
“We will build on our recent work with development finance institutions, export credit agencies, pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, insurance companies and philanthropic partners to take concrete steps forward under our vision of a new African financial architecture,” said Dr. Ould Tah.
Africa Private Capital Mobilization Day is in line with President Ould Tarr’s ‘Four Cardinal Points’ vision, which focuses on unlocking Africa’s capital potential, strengthening financial sovereignty, turning population growth into dividends and providing resilient infrastructure and value chains.
UK Development Secretary Jenny Chapman added: “Recognizing the City of London’s important role in mobilizing investment for Africa, I am delighted that President Ould Tarr has chosen to host the first ever Private Capital Mobilization Day here in London.”
A change in the UK’s role from donor to investor will help countries wishing to grow their economies and ultimately escape the need for aid. ”
The program focused on reshaping risk perception in Africa, designing innovative financial platforms, and mobilizing capital in vulnerable frontier markets. A new analysis of the Global Emerging Markets Risk Database provided by the World Development Center has shown that long-term lending to African borrowers has historically been significantly less risky than generally perceived.
Sector-focused sessions highlighted health and aviation as strategic drivers of Africa’s economic resilience, productivity and integration. Two flagship initiatives were introduced. The Africa Medicines and Equipment Facility, developed in partnership with the Gates Foundation, aims to provide predictable, timely and affordable funding to secure essential medicines and medical equipment across African countries. The Integrated Aviation Transformation Program for Africa, supported by the Blended Finance Facility, aims to modernize and expand Africa’s aviation ecosystem, from airports and airlines to trade, tourism and the delivery of essential services for regional integration.
In a closed-door roundtable, President Ould Tarr brought together senior executives from around 30 major institutional investors to discuss the creation of an Africa-focused private sector innovation lab. The platform aims to co-create new financing instruments, partnership models and risk-sharing solutions tailored to African markets.
The outcomes of the African Private Capital Mobilization Day were summarized in the London Communiqué, demonstrating a clear commitment by the AfDB and its partners to increase private capital mobilization. Going forward, priority actions and implementation pathways will transform ambition into scalable financing and risk mitigation solutions, accelerating Africa’s journey towards sustainable development.
