AfDB in talks to plug $400B financing gap
The bank has held talks with financiers to find ways to mobilize around $4 trillion in untapped domestic capital to fund Africa's development needs, its president said.
The African Development Bank (AfDB) is engaged in discussions with financiers in an effort to mobilize approximately $4 trillion in untapped domestic capital to address Africa's development financing gap, according to the bank's president, Sidi Ould Tah. Tah revealed that the primary objective is to bridge a financing gap estimated at $400 billion annually.
Speaking at the S&P emerging markets conference in London, Tah emphasized the bank's efforts to enhance coordination between Africa-based pension funds, banks, and capital markets to facilitate greater local financing through improved "risk allocation."
As the head of the AfDB since September last year, Tah announced the bank's intention to initiate a program aimed at assisting African countries in better preparing for credit ratings. He explained that market opacity breeds the perception of high risk, resulting in increased borrowing costs. Tah outlined the bank's plan to collaborate with governments in gathering data to enhance transparency.
His remarks highlight African policymakers' long-standing contention that Western institutions' influence on risk assessments has resulted in unjustly high funding costs.
Written by urgent.news from Semafor's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
