The potentials of the African continent will lay bare in South Africa where global and institutional investors are meeting to attract multi-billion-dollar deals across the continent and usher in a new era.
The event hosted by African Development Bank (AfDB) kicked off on Monday with a media briefing in Johannesburg, South Africa during which its President, Akinwumi Adesina stated that the forum will focus on advancing projects to bankable stages, raising capital and accelerating the financial closure of deals.
The forum which aspires at mobilizing and crowding in global investment capital for the continent’s ambitious development agenda would be converging regional, global and institutional investors, private sector leaders, prominent government officials, and representatives of State
Speaking at the event, the South African Deputy Director of the National Treasury Vuyelwa Vumendlini opined that the Africa Investment Forum provides a continental complement to the country’s recent investment forum which successfully attracted more than 200 billion Rand in investments.
According to the African Development Bank Director of Communications, Victor Oladokun , he described the Africa Investment Forum as a unique platform where already curated projects, advanced and de-risked and are brought in front of investors stating that the innovative partnership of key global and continental players will focus on transactions and deals.
Statistics from the African Development Bank’s Economic Outlook 2018 shows that between US, $130-170 billion a year is needed to finance infrastructure for Africa’s growing population. While global assets under management amount to an estimated US$131 trillion dollars, most of that is not invested in Africa; even one percent of that could provide the investment gap Africa needs.
The Forum has curated a total pipeline of 230 projects worth over US$208 billion spanning several sectors – energy, infrastructure, transport and utilities, industry, agriculture, ICT and Telecoms, water and sanitation and health and education.
Twenty-eight boardroom sessions will curate, screen and ensure the projects are bankable and reach financial close. A total of 61 deals estimated at more than US$40 billion will feature in Boardroom Sessions, while another US$28 billion worth of deals will be showcased to investors at a marketplace Gallery Walk.
The Forum also includes a co-guarantee platform that will develop and deploy innovative instruments to de-risk private sector investments at scale, thus boosting investor confidence.
The inaugural Africa Investment Forum will feature a session on Championing Investments− an investment conversation with African Heads of State to highlight concrete and transformative actions for a new business landscape in Africa, including collective efforts to facilitate private investments.
Global financial institutions such as Africa Finance Corporation, Development Bank of South Africa, Africa 50, Afreximbank, European Investment Bank, Trade and Development Bank and the Islamic Development Bank, have come together to form solid strategic alliances around this new venture.
Gauteng Province officials and government representatives in attendance included Muzi Mathema, of Guateng Growth and Development Agency, Ms Vuli Vumendlini, Deputy Director of the Nationa Treasury and Ayanda Holo, Director of Media engagement for the South African government. African Development Bank Executive Director Mmakgoshi Lekhethe was also in attendance.
The Africa Investment Forum takes place from November 7 to 9, 2018 at the Sandton Convention Centre, Johannesburg.
No comments:
Post a Comment