The Third Financing Summit for Africa’s Infrastructure Development opened today in Luanda with a resounding call to action from African leaders, who emphasized that unlocking the continent’s full potential as a global growth engine depends on bridging its vast infrastructure financing gap.

In his opening address, H.E. João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço, President of the Republic of Angola and Chairperson of the African Union (AU), stressed that Africa must invest between $130 billion and $170 billion annually to lay the foundation for sustainable growth. “We must move from words to action,” President Lourenço urged. “This Summit represents a decisive step toward mobilizing the resources needed to enhance connectivity and integration across our continent.”

Co-hosted by the African Union Commission (AUC) and the African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD) under the theme “Capital, Corridors, Trade: Investing in Infrastructure for the AfCFTA and Shared Prosperity,” the Summit seeks to accelerate strategic and bankable projects that will advance the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) - a unified market of 1.4 billion people.

A New Phase of African Self-Determination

In his address at the Luanda Summit, African Union Commission Chairperson H.E. Mahmoud Ali Youssouf emphasized that Africa is entering a new phase of self-determination, one in which the continent must take ownership of financing, planning, and implementing its own development. He underscored that infrastructure investment is not merely technical but deeply political and strategic, vital to Africa’s economic sovereignty, competitiveness, and unity. Highlighting progress made under the PIDA framework, he called for an African-driven ecosystem for development financing through domestic resource mobilization, stronger private sector participation, and greater access to climate funds.

Echoing the urgency the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, framed infrastructure investment as a deeply political and strategic imperative for Africa’s economic sovereignty. “We are shifting from a logic of assistance to a logic of alliance, where partners align their engagement with priorities defined by Africa itself,” he declared. He concluded with a powerful vision: “What we are building here are not merely roads and bridges. We are building an Africa that is connected, confident, and sovereign.”

Momentum from Dakar to Luanda: From Talk to Traction

Ms. Nardos Bekele-Thomas, CEO of AUDA-NEPAD, reported significant progress since the previous summit in Dakar, Senegal. She announced that the AU, alongside African financial institutions, has already raised $1.5 billion to execute high-impact cross-border projects.

“The lesson from Dakar is clear: we can no longer treat financing as a fragmented market of scattered deals. We must transform it into a unified strategy,” Bekele-Thomas stated. She detailed new financial instruments, including the Alliance for Green Infrastructure in Africa’s Project Development Fund, which has achieved a first close of $118 million and is managed by Africa50.

During the Leaders’ Dialogue, H.E. Lerato Dorothy Mataboge, African Union Commissioner for Infrastructure and Energy, reaffirmed that Africa’s aspirations — from industrialization to integration — depend on strong and interconnected infrastructure. “We cannot talk about the Africa we want without first building the infrastructure we need,” she stated. “Our progress must be measured by how we have built and industrialized our continent.”

Deals and Dollars: Concrete Commitments Announced

The Summit moved beyond dialogue to secure tangible commitments, marked by the signing of three key Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs):

1. A partnership between the African Social Security Association and AUDA-NEPAD to channel African pension funds into continental infrastructure.
2. An MOU with Qatar Airways establishing a $500 million endowment for renewable energy and climate-aligned industrialization.
3. The establishment of the Angola Export and Trade Facility to promote regional cooperation and trade.

Accelerating Deal-Making in Dedicated ‘Deal Rooms’

A central feature of the Summit are specially designated ‘deal rooms,’ where investors are engaged in curated, sector-specific pitch meetings for 13 advanced, near-bankable projects in energy, ICT, water, and transport. These sessions are designed to facilitate in-depth due diligence and accelerate projects toward financial close.

The III Financing Summit for Africa’s Infrastructure Development stands as a definitive moment, signaling Africa's unified resolve to finance its own destiny and build the interconnected, prosperous future its people deserve.

For Media Inquiries: 

1. Ms. Zipporah Maubane | African Union Development Agency-NEPAD, Head of Communications and Advocacy Email: ZipporahM@nepad.org . Website: www.nepad.org
2. Ms. Bezayit Eyoel | Information Analyst | Department of Infrastructure and Energy| African Union Commission| E-mail: BezayitE@africanunion.org|
3. Mr. Gamal Eldin Ahmed A. Karrar | Senior Communication Officer | Information and Communication Directorate (ICD), African Union Commission | E-mail: GamalK@africanunion.org