Time Is Running Out to Close Continent’s Massive Infrastructure and Climate-Finance Gap – 2025 Africa Investment Forum Panel Warns
Senior policymakers, investors, and development finance leaders converged at the 2025 Africa Investment Forum Market Days on Thursday to tackle one of the continent's most pressing challenges: unlocking the capital required to meet surging infrastructure and climate demands.
The high-level panel, titled "Innovative Finance Instruments Powering Africa's Sustainable Transformation,” served as a clear call to action for adopting new approaches beyond conventional funding models and into a new era of investment.
Moderated by Boston Consulting Group's Partner and Managing Director, Zineb Sqalli, the session opened with a stark assessment: By 2050, Africa will add one billion people, more than half in cities, yet it invests only $75 billion of the $150 billion it needs annually for infrastructure.
The climate-finance gap is even wider, with the continent receiving just $30 billion of the $300 billion required each year. “This gap is massive, but it is also a great opportunity,” Sqalli said, highlighting the growth of blended finance, Islamic green bonds, diaspora vehicles and new infrastructure platforms.
Setting a determined tone, Dr Obaid Saif Hamad Al-Zaabi, Chairman of the Arab Authority for Agricultural Investment and Development, called for a fundamental shift in how food systems are financed.
With climate pressures and food insecurity rising across Africa and the Arab world, he called for treating the food-security value chain as a strategic asset class. “Climate change is no longer an environmental issue -- it is a financial risk on our balance sheets,” he warned.
Al-Zaabi advocated for expanded guarantees, sustainable finance instruments and specialised vehicles for smallholder farmers, whom he called the “engine” of Africa's food system. He further added that digitalisation, is vital to reduce information asymmetry and build investor trust.
On broader investment readiness, Amadou Hott, Chairman of the Africa Advisory Board of Vision Invest and former Senegalese Minister of Economy, said the continent's most severe bottleneck remains the scarcity of bankable projects.
“If we want to transform the continent, we need to multiply what we are doing today by 100 or even 150,” he said. Hott stressed the need for far stronger project-preparation capacity and pointed to currency risk as a major deterrent.
He urged African governments to mobilise more domestic capital - from sovereign wealth funds, pension assets and reserves -- much of which is currently invested offshore.
Dr Nasser Al-Kahtani, Executive Director of the Arab Gulf Programme for Development, emphasised that Africa cannot meet its development targets without deepening inclusive finance.
“Seventy percent of the food we eat comes from small farmers. They save the world, but cannot feed themselves,” Al-Kahtani said, urging blended-finance structures that shift countries “from grants to investment” while building equity for micro-entrepreneurs.
A private sector perspective on financing Africa's infrastructure gap was presented by Jacques Kanga, Director and Head of Finance at Algest Investment Bank. Kanga outlined how targeted financial instruments could be the key to mobilizing private capital and closing the continent's estimated annual $130 billion to $170 billion funding shortfall.
He identified infrastructure Special Purpose Vehicles that reduce sovereign and political risk, blended-finance structures that lower project costs, and diaspora-backed financing that taps into the $95 billion Africans abroad send home each year. According to Kanga these tools, reinforce transparency, governance and global investor confidence.
Ouns Lemseffer, Partner at Ashurst, highlighted progress across the continent, with several countries adopting advanced securitisation and sustainable-finance laws that enable project bonds, Sukuk, debt funds and innovative financing for electrification initiatives such as Côte d'Ivoire's Programme Électricité Pour Tous.
But she cautioned that progress remains uneven. “A sophisticated legal framework in one area is not enough,” Lemseffer said. “Policymakers need a holistic approach -- from investor rules to bankruptcy protection -- to fully open capital markets to long-term infrastructure investment.”
As the session closed the message from the high-level panel was definitive. Innovative finance is indispensable for Africa's future. Panelists converged on a unified vision where new financial instruments are central to mobilizing the scale of capital required to meet the continent's immense demographic, climate, and economic ambitions, effectively converting opportunities into transformative, investable projects across Africa.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Development Bank Group (AfDB).Click here (https://apo-opa.co/4rnvNvP) for photos.
Contact:
Wilberforce Kwasi
Communication and External Relations Department
Email: media@afdb.org
Basketball Africa League and Wave Côte d’Ivoire unveil newly renovated basketball court in Abidjan
The Basketball Africa League (BAL) (https://BAL.NBA.com) and Wave Côte d'Ivoire (Wave), Africa's fastest-growing mobile money platform, today unveiled a newly renovated basketball court at 4 Paniers (Four Baskets) in the Yopougon district of Abidjan. The renovated court is part of the BAL and Wave's collaboration to bring communities in Côte d'Ivoire and Senegal closer to the game and supports NBA Africa's commitment to build or renovate 1,000 basketball courts on the continent over the next decade.
The court was unveiled by Wave Côte d'Ivoire General Manager Katier Bamba and BAL Head of League Operations Ruben Boumtje-Boumtje at a ceremony at Yopougon 4 Paniers, which was followed by a basketball clinic for 50 boys and girls ages 16 and under from local schools and a U-23 3-on-3 tournament for male and female players.
“The renovation of this court reflects our commitment to working with partners like Wave to empower the youth of Africa,” said Boumtje-Boumtje. “Over the past year, our joint efforts with Wave, including hosting tournaments and creating safe spaces for young boys and girls to learn and play the game, will leave a lasting and meaningful impact in communities across Côte d'Ivoire and Senegal.”
“Taking part in the project of renovation of this basketball court alongside the BAL reflects Wave's mission to support and invest in the communities we serve,” said Bamba. Basketball is a powerful force for connecting communities, and we are proud to contribute to the creation of modern, accessible spaces where young people can learn, play, and thrive. This project is not just about renovating a court, but also about building confidence and inspiring the next generation for an even stronger Côte d'Ivoire tomorrow.”
Since their collaboration launched in March 2025, the BAL and Wave held “Tournoi des Quartiers” basketball tournaments in Abidjan and Dakar, Senegal featuring a 1,000,000 CAF prize for each winning team and provided an all-expenses paid trip for Reine Esther Yao from the U-18 Côte d'Ivoire Women's National Team to attend the 2025 BAL Finals in Pretoria, South Africa, in June.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Basketball Africa League (BAL).Contacts:
Marie-Pierre Anamba Onana
BAL
+221 78 637 70 62
manamba@thebal.com
Armel Assohou
Wave Côte d'Ivoire
+225 0595 7966 87
armel.assohou@wave.com
About the BAL:
The Basketball Africa League (BAL), a partnership between the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) and NBA Africa, is a professional league featuring 12 club teams from across Africa that concluded its fifth season in June 2025. Headquartered in Dakar, Senegal, the BAL builds on the foundation of club competitions FIBA Africa has organized across the continent and marks the NBA's first collaboration to operate a league outside North America. Fans can follow the BAL (@ theBAL) on Facebook (https://apo-opa.co/3K1ENWH), Instagram (https://apo-opa.co/3K2In2R), Threads (https://apo-opa.co/49NgtCe), X (https://apo-opa.co/49NyK2s), and YouTube (https://apo-opa.co/4rpAhC0) and register their interest in receiving more information at https://BAL.NBA.com.
About Wave:
Wave Mobile Money is Africa's fastest-growing mobile money product. Wave is using technology to build a radically inclusive and extremely affordable financial network. Our ambition is to make Africa the first cashless continent in the world. Wave is operating in nine countries (Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire, Uganda, Gambia, Sierra Leone, Mali, Burkina Faso, Cameroon and Niger). You can learn more at https://www.Wave.com.
Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) holds validation workshop for the draft regional e-government strategy
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The ECOWAS Commission, in collaboration with the World Bank and Sense Strategy under the West Africa Regional Digital Integration Programme (WARDIP), convened a validation workshop in Abuja, Nigeria, on 25th November 2025 to review the draft Regional E-Government Strategy a major milestone in the region's digital transformation agenda.
The meeting brought together senior officials, digital economy experts and representatives from ministries, regulatory bodies, and institutions across all ECOWAS Member States. The workshop aimed to finalise the strategic direction, governance arrangements and implementation roadmap for a unified, citizen-centred regional e-government framework.
Speaking on behalf of the ECOWAS Commission, Mrs. Folake Olagunju, Acting Director of Digital Economy and Post, welcomed participants and emphasised the strategic importance of the initiative. She noted that the draft strategy is rooted in ECOWAS' overarching development frameworks Vision 2050, the Community Strategic Framework (2023–2027) and the Digital Sector Development Strategy (2024–2029) and is further aligned with continental and global instruments such as the AU Digital Transformation Strategy 2030, the AU Data Policy Framework, and the UN Global Digital Compact (GDC). She highlighted that extensive diagnostics, validated on the 25th August 2025, confirmed Member States' shared commitment to a transformative, inclusive and interoperable regional approach to digital governance.
The delegation from Sierra Leone, current Chair of the ECOWAS ICT Expert Group, delivered goodwill remarks through Mrs. Aminata Omaru Thollay, Deputy Director at the Ministry of Communication, Technology & Innovation. She described the workshop as a historic moment, reaffirming the importance of collective ownership in driving regional digital progress.
“A regional approach is not only beneficial but non-negotiable,” she stated. “Only coordinated action can transform isolated pockets of progress into a coherent pathway for digital advancement across West Africa.”
Participants engaged in detailed discussions on the strategy's proposed pillars. The meeting also reflected on the principles guiding the strategy, such as regional coherence with national flexibility, citizen-centred development, trust, resilience and sustainability.
The ECOWAS Commission acknowledged the contributions of Member States, regional partners, and Sense Strategy, the consulting firm supporting the development of the strategy, for their continued technical expertise and collaboration.
The outcomes of the workshop will feed into the final version of the Regional E-Government Strategy, to be presented for adoption through the ECOWAS decision-making structures.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).Statement: Recommit and resource the power of women and girls to transform the Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) response
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This World AIDS Day comes amid deep uncertainty, and this year's theme, “Overcoming disruption, transforming the AIDS response”, is a clear call to action: the world must step up, not step back.
Gender inequality continues to fuel the AIDS pandemic. Today, 53 per cent of the 40.8 million people living with HIV are women and girls. In sub-Saharan Africa, adolescent girls are acquiring HIV at six times the rate of boys. Violence, unequal access to healthcare, and limited opportunities for leadership all contribute to this crisis—and women continue to bear the brunt of care and support responsibilities.
These inequalities are now deepening. Cuts in global funding threaten to reverse decades of progress, shrinking the very programmes and resources that protect and empower women and girls. But women living with HIV are not victims—they are advocates, leaders, and change-makers. Their voices must be heard, their rights upheld, and their leadership fully resourced.
Against this backdrop, UN Women continues to act. In 2024, we strengthened the leadership capacities of more than 35,000 women in 36 countries and expanded access to prevention and treatment through community-based services, including outreach and legal empowerment across Africa and Central Asia.
The Beijing+30 Political Declaration reaffirms its commitment to women's health as a critical area of concern of the Beijing Platform for Action and pledges to advance the health rights of all women and girls.
This World AIDS Day, let's recommit. We must reverse disinvestment, centre gender equality and human rights in the AIDS response, and maintain political will for prevention, care, and treatment. That means increasing domestic funding, ending violence, and supporting the networks of women whose leadership is transforming lives.
AIDS is not over—and neither is our fight. Now is the time to protect what we've achieved and push forward, together.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of UN Women.Ambassador Zhao Weiping Attends the Handover and Takeover Certificate Signing Ceremony of China-Aided Satellite Ground Data Receiving Station and Processing System Construction Project in...
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On November 20, the handover and takeover certificate signing ceremony of China-Aided Satellite Ground Data Receiving Station and Processing System Construction Project in Namibia was held in Windhoek. Chinese Ambassador to Namibia Zhao Weiping attended the ceremony and jointly signed the project handover and takeover certificate with Dr. Lisho Mundia, Deputy Executive Director of the Ministry of Education, Innovation, Youth, Sports, Arts and Culture of Namibia.
In his remarks, Ambassador Zhao said that this project is the first high-tech project aided by China in Namibia, which holds significant importance for advancing Namibia's scientific and technological development. It's also a vivid example of implementing the spirit of the FOCAC Beijing Summit in joining hands with African countries to advance modernization. Zhao expressed his hope that both sides will further deepen cooperation in science and technology in future.
Dr. Lisho Mundia expressed gratitude for China's selfless support to Namibia and said in his speech that China is a global leader in high-tech fields such as space technology, and Namibia cherishes China's friendship in sharing science and knowledge with Namibia. He stated that Namibia looks forward to deepening cooperation with China in the field of science and technology.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Embassy of the People's Republic of China in the Republic of Namibia.