Why Africa Needs to Fund Its Own Future

Africa faces a $1.6 trillion financing gap by 2030. At AAM2025, leaders urge unity, confidence, and local investment to drive self-reliant economic growth. Traditional lenders increasingly stepping back.

During a pivotal panel discussion titled “Shaping Our Collective Financial Destiny,” leaders from across Africa’s multilateral institutions, development banks, and investment bodies made one thing clear: the continent must shift from dependence to ownership.

“Let’s come together as heads of missions, heads of states. Let’s support this and put in the framework” said Ken Aghoghovbia, Deputy Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer of the African Reinsurance Corporation (Africa Re).

The panel emphasized that traditional lenders are retreating, but African institutions are stepping up. More than $200 billion has already been deployed by African multilateral organizations, backing thousands of SMEs and plugging financing gaps when others walked away. Despite these wins, the continent still struggles to unlock the full potential of its own resources.

“So some of the things we have to address will have to be, how do we

harmonise? And I think Einstein said, you talk about regulations and open up markets, because AfCFTA trade cannot happen unless we have services in open up” said Mrs. Hope Murera, Managing Director and CEO of ZEP-RE (PTA Reinsurance Company). “What’s needed now is the will to invest it locally and at scale.” However, structural issues persist. Fragmented regulations, outdated policies, and market barriers are preventing the smooth flow of capital across borders. These, experts argue, are the real culprits behind sluggish investment and economic growth.

Benjamin Mugisha, Chief Underwriting Officer at ATIDI, noted that investors looking at Africa often focus on two major concerns: risk and regulation. Harmonizing financial and regulatory frameworks across the continent, especially under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), is critical. “So starting out with foreign direct investors, whether it’s equity or debt, looking at Africa, they’re looking at two perspectives that our institutions can help to address. The first one is risk… But they are also looking at regulations”he said.

Ms. Nardos Bekele-Thomas, CEO of AUDA-NEPAD, stressed the importance of working “in unison” to meet Africa’s development ambitions and moonshot goals. “Our needs are enormous… if we really want to realize the moonshots, we should all work together in unison,” she said. Confidence in African systems was a recurring theme. Marlene Ngoyi, CEO of the Fund for Export Development in Africa (FEDA), warned that without trusting local institutions and investing African capital in Africa’s future, development will stall. “Let’s have this confidence in each other to understand that if we don’t do this, simple things such as using the capital that comes from Africans, from African people, from African companies, to continue to promote our own development, we’re not going to go very far. “ Ngoyi said. 

Mr. Benard Paul Mono, Acting Director-General of the East African Development Bank (EADB), reminded attendees of Africa’s long-term blueprint: Agenda 2063. The vision is ambitious, but acceleration is needed “We have great plans. We have agenda until 2063, which started, I believe in 2015, with a 50-year plan that sees the emergence of Africa. “We need to accelerate that plan,” he said. To close, Thierno Habib Hann, CEO of Shelter Afrique Development Bank (SHAFDB), outlined a bold vision for the future rooted in collaboration, knowledge sharing, and impactful investments. The vision for us is to drive African development by strengthening our capital and our collaboration, not only from an investment perspective, but also from knowledge sharing, capacity building and also partnerships in different developmental agendas,” he said. 

As the world changes and global financial systems shift, Africa is being called to step into its own power. The message from AAM2025 was clear: The resources are here. The vision is clear. The time for planning is over, it’s time for execution.