11th November, 2019
The second edition of the Africa Investment Forum, organised by the African Development Bank, began today in Johannesburg, South Africa. It will end on 13 November.
Attending are host President Cyril Ramaphosa, Ghanaian leader, Nana Akufo-Addo and Rwanda’s leader, Paul Kagame.
Ahead of the event, the bank, stakeholders and the South African government at a press conference on Sunday said the forum will be short on talk and heavy on deals.
The multi-stakeholder transactional marketplace is aimed at raising capital, advancing projects to bankable stage and accelerating financial closure of deals.
“Last year we achieved remarkable results with over $ 36 billion of investments interests that were signed or being were closed. We are hoping that this year it is going to be even better,” said Vuyelwa Vumendlini, Deputy Director General of the National Treasury of South Africa.
Sharing similar sentiments, Mduduzi Mbapa, Senior Advisor to the Premier of Gauteng noted that the biggest take away from last year’s edition was the need for greater interconnection on the continent. “In fact, many have been writing about Africa rising. Through this Forum, we are making sure that our continent does rise and it contributes to the growth of the world,” he said.
Around 2000 delegates are expected to attend the innovative investment marketplace which will bring together heads of state, project sponsors, pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, institutional investors in 60 boardroom sessions to move projects from commitment to action.
“The Africa Investment Forum is designed to be a transformative platform for deals across the continent. The Africa investment forum goes way beyond the three-day event starting Monday. It is continuous process of nurturing deals, projects preparation, deal closure, meeting boardrooms, but most importantly ensuring that those deals actually happen to impact the continent,” said Chinelo Anohu, Head and Senior Director of the Africa Investment Forum.
The Africa Investment Forum partners include Africa 50, Africa Finance Corporation, Africa Export-Import Bank, Development Bank of Southern Africa, European Investment Bank, Islamic Development Bank, Trade and Development Bank.
Victor Oladokun, Director of Communication and External Relations at the Bank, said the Forum’s agenda was simple.
“In a nutshell, the Africa Investment Forum has a very simple agenda that is tilting the flow of capital into Africa at a much greater level that we have experienced up to now.