Invest in Africa (digital - reduced)

The theme of the 

28th AU Summit 

Investing in youth in order to 

harness demographic dividend 

Building the 

African economy 

Investment in the land 

and the people 

Encouraging trade 

across the continent 

Latest updates on CFTA and 

other aspects of trade 

Africa 

Invest in 

An official publication 

of the African Union 

28th AU Summit 

2017 

tourism 

developing 

youth 

investing in 

AGENDA 

2063: 

the africa we want 

regional INTERGRATION 

TRADE

Contents 

08 11 

12 

15 17 

HE Dr Nkosazana 

Dlamini Zuma, 

Chairperson, 

African Union 

Commission (AUC) 

HE Erastus 

Mwencha, 

Deputy 

Chairperson, 

AUC 

HE Dr Arikana 

Chihombori Quao, 

Ambassador of the 

African Union to the 

United States 

Florizelle 

Liser, 

President & CEO, 

Corporate Council on 


Stephen 

Hayes, 

Former President 

& CEO, Corporate 

Council on Africa 

AU NEWS 

Welcome to Invest 

in Africa 2017 

13 

A brief look at what 

was achieved at the 

27th AU Summit in Kigali 

and other events over 

the past six months 

18 

Agenda 

2063 

update 

20 

The role of the 

African Diaspora 

AFRICA’S ECONOMIC 

DEVELOPMENT 

Projects and programmes to 

help the African economy 

23 

HE Dr Anthony Mothae 

Maruping, Commissioner for 

Economic Affairs, AUC 

24 

Investing in youth to harness 

economic potential 

29 

The expanding financial 

sector in Africa 

BUILDING AFRICA 

Power, energy and 

infrastructure 

37 

HE Dr Elham Mahmoud Ahmed 

Ibrahim, Commissioner for 

Infrastructure and Energy, AUC 

38 

Renewable energy in Africa 

42 

Investing in infrastructure 

38 

Renewable 

energy in 


46 

Developing Africa’s 

hydrocarbon resources 

48 

The African Mining Vision 

54 

Facing the 

manufacturing headwind 

56 

The rise of Africa’s blue economy 

Invest in Africa 2017 | 3

SCIENCE & 

TECHNOLOGY 

The importance of driving 

development forward 

58 

HE Dr Martial De-Paul 

Ikounga, Commissioner for 

Human Resources, Science 

and Technology, AUC 

60 

Africa moving 

towards network readiness 

64 

‘Smart cities’ and 

urbanisation in Africa 

68 

Encouraging women 

in STEM industries 

TRADE AND 

INTEGRATION 

Creating a connected continent 

76 

Regional 

integration 

78 

One continent with varied 

opportunities 

AGRICULTURE 

The evolution of the 

African agriculture and 

agribusiness industry 

86 

AUC and FAO’s 

agriculture mechanisation 

92 

Wins in African agriculture 

HEALTH AND 

EDUCATION 

Information and innovation 

are key in ending epidemics 

and terrorism 

95 

HE Dr Mustapha 

Sidiki Kaloko, Commissioner 

for Social Affairs, AUC 

96 

Ending AIDS, TB 

and malaria by 2030 

98 

The AU’s fight 

against terrorism 

AFRICA AND THE 

WORLD 

How the new political 

landscape will affect Africa 

102 

President Trump’s 

Africa policy 

104 

Trading in a post-Brexit world 

106 

A list of African 

investment organisations 

110 

Index of 

advertisers 

70 

HE Fatima Haram Acyl, 

Commissioner for Trade and 

Industry, AUC 

72 

Towards a Continental 

Free Trade Area 

86 

AUC and FAO’s 

agriculture 

mechanisation 

4 | Invest in Africa 2017

EUROPE, AFRICA, ASIA 

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Invest in 

2017 

Subscribe now at investinafrica.media 

EDITORIAL 

Managing Editor 

Zoë Henry 

AU Editorial 

Senior Political Officer 

Tarek Ben Youssef 

AU Editorial Liaison 

Josepha Mushabe 

Musabyemariya 

Sub Editor 

Matthew Hutchings 

MANAGEMENT 

Chief Executive Officer 

Richard Linn 

SALES 

Sales Manager 

Laurie Pilate 

Sales Executive 

James Johnston 


David Friel 


Rachid Kadouri 

DESIGN 

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CONTRIBUTING AUTHORS 

Ebele Agu is Vice President 

of the Foundation Working 

to Advance STEM Education 

for African Women 

Tapiwa Chiwewe is a 

Research Scientist at IBM 

Research – South Africa 

Rachel Cummings is a 

London-based writer with 

a background in African 

peace and security issues. 

Joanne Davis is a South 

African scholar of African 

literature, literary theory 

and history 

Julius Erukilede is an 

African Business Consultant 

focusing on African 

transport and logistics 

Trudi Hartzenberg is the 

Executive Director of Tralac 

Trade Law Centre 

Ruth Henwood Mathys is a 

masters candidate in public 

health who has been in 

public health in for 11 years 

Calestous Juma is a 

Professor at the Kennedy 

School at Harvard 

Bisi Lamikanra is the Head 

of Management Consulting 

at KPMG Nigeria 

Edwin Laurent is the 

Director of the Ramphal 

Institute and a Senior 

Adviser to the UNEP 

Ruari McCallion is a 

freelance journalist 

specialising in the 

manufacturing industry 

Yasine Mohabuth is 

a journalist based if 

Mauritius who focuses on 

the growth of the African 

blue economy 

Duncan Pieterse holds a 

PhD in Economics and is a 

public sector economist in 

South Africa 

Carlo Ratti is a Professor 

at the MIT Department of 

Urban Studies and Planning 

Sarah Rundell is a business 

journalist with 

international experience 

Witney Schneidman 

served as Deputy Assistant 

Secretary of State for 

African Affairs 

Maria Helena Semedo is the 

Deputy Director-General for 

the Natural Resources 

Management and 

Environment Department 

of the FAO 

Julian Turner is freelance 

journalist who writes for 

a variety of national 

publications 

Pamela Whitby is an 

experienced reporter, 

writer and editor, 

specialising in African 

business 

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Foreword 

The conditions are now optimal for a 

real and inclusive transformation to 

create a prosperous Africa 

My fellow Africans, 

friends and 

partners of 

Africa. It gives 

me great 

pleasure to 

present to you Invest in Africa 2017- 

the eighth edition of this annual 

publication that reflects on the 

continent’s recent accomplishments 

and highlights the various 

opportunities it now offers to its 

citizens and the world. 

Positive trends 

Much has been achieved across Africa 

during the last four years. There are 

many positive trends on the continent 

across the entire political and 

socio-economic spectrum. We are 

shifting the emphasis from policy 

formulation and norms setting to the 

effective and swift implementation of 

our strategic frameworks and the 

transformative vision of the continent 

enshrined in Agenda 2063 and its First 

Ten Year Implementation Plan. 

The conditions are now optimal for 

a real and inclusive transformation to 

create a prosperous Africa. The 

continent is determined to take its 

rightful place in the world, as a 

trading, knowledge producing region 

of innovation and technological 

development. Regional integration and 

cooperation, which are the key drivers 

of this process, have deepened and 

expanded considerably during the last 

fifteen years. A strong momentum in 

Africa to work on continental and 

regional basis has been reinforced to 

seize numerous opportunities and 

address common challenges that 

cannot be solved solely at the national 

level. In this context, we have placed a 

particular emphasis on domestication 

of Agenda 2063, whose broader 

priorities encompass the 2030 

Sustainable Development Goals, to 

become an integral part of national 

development plans and budgets of our 

Members States. The two agendas are 

strongly aligned to promote shared 

prosperity, inclusive and 

people-centred development. 

Our continental priorities 

constitute the basis of our role and 

engagement with the rest of the world. 

In this particular regard, we have 


Foreword 

HE Dr 

Nkosazana 

Dlamini Zuma 

Chairperson, African Union Commission 

attached importance to the 

revitalisation and reinforcement of 

the African Union’s strategic 

partnerships with our international 

partners. Our relations with other 

regions, countries and multilateral 

organisations are grounded on 

Agenda 2063, our Vision of the Africa 

We Want. The support of Africa’s 

development priorities including 

regional integration, infrastructure 

and agricultural development, 

industrialisation, health security, 

science and technology, human 

capital and institutional capacity 

building, climate resilience, women 

empowerment, youth employment, as 

well as peace and security, are at the 

centre of the African Union 

Commission’s engagement with the 

world. 

Innovative financing 

Fully cognizant of the imperative for 

structural transformation that the 

continent requires in critical areas, 

we have spared no effort to identify 

innovative financing mechanisms to 

ensure our self-reliance and to 

support the attainment of the 

continent’s development and 

integration agenda. We cannot talk 

about Africa’s development without 

talking about the mobilisation of 

Africa’s domestic resources as the 

mainstay of our development and 

growth. The historic and landmark 

decision taken at the AU Summit in 

Kigali in July 2016 on Financing the 

Union by instituting and 

implementing a 0.2% levy on all 

eligible imports to Africa fits within 

this strategic perspective. This is in 

furtherance of the Johannesburg 

Declaration on Self-Reliance adopted 

at the AU Summit of July 2015. 

Investments in the youth 

After dedicating the year 2016 to the 

“Promotion of Human Rights with a 

Particular Focus on the Rights of 

Women”, our Heads of State and 

Government decided in their 

collective wisdom to place the 2017 

AU Summit under the salient theme 

of “Harnessing the Demographic 

Dividend Through Investments in 

the Youth”. We believe that “people 

are the real wealth of nations”. 

Investment in African people remains 

at the centre of the African Union’s 

agenda. It is critically important that 

Africa, through the right policy 

actions and smart initiatives, 

harnesses the demographic dividend 

by empowering women and girls, 

improving their health, enhancing 

their human capital through 

increased investment in education 

and skills, and providing them with 

greater opportunities in the growing 

knowledge based global economy. 

Every year for the next decade, 11 

million African youth will enter the 

job market. We must equip them 

with the right skills and training in 

order to actively contribute to the 

transformation of the continent. An 

African skills revolution is urgently 

needed in order to leapfrog 

development. The African Economic 

Platform, scheduled to take place 

in 2017, will provide a forum for the 

AU political leadership, business 

and academic communities to 

discuss the economic transformation 

of the continent and the African 

skills revolution. 

The African Union Commission 

has convened every year since 2013 

an intergenerational dialogue and 

worked with the Pan African Youth 

Movement and all the African 

Students Union and other movement 

of youth on taking forward Agenda 

2063. The recent African Union 

Commission Youth Mainstreaming 

initiative that we launched in 

November 2016 aims to fast-track 

the on-going youth activities of the 

Commission in a strategic and 

coordinated manner, as a path to 

realising the 6th Aspiration of 

Agenda 2063: “An Africa whose 

development is people-driven, relying 

on the potential of African people, 

especially its women and youth, and 

caring for children”. 

I am confident that Africa’s future 

is bright. With the right investments 

in our people, the continuous 

improvement of democratic and 

participatory governance, and by 

continuing to build on what has been 

achieved during the last 15 years of 

transformational leadership, our 

vision of a prosperous, peaceful and 

integrated Africa, driven by its own 

citizens and playing a dynamic role in 

the world is definitely on course. • 


Philip Morris Perspective 

It’s time for Africa 

The conversation about Africa has shifted from one of 

deficits to one of opportunities and innovation, even for 

a company like Philip Morris, which has long sourced 

tobacco leaf from the continent but only in the past 

decade entered the consumer market. 

Although smoking prevalence has declined 

in many countries over the last forty 

years, millions of adults choose to 

continue to smoke cigarettes and, in 

certain parts of Africa, the opposite trend 

is true. 

Recognising this, the policy of tobacco 

harm reduction is being put forward by a 

multitude of stakeholders – including 

public health organisations, healthcare 

professionals and regulators – to 

complement the other major strategies for 

reducing smoking-related harm. 

In a bid to convert adult smokers to new 

technologies with the potential to 

dramatically lower the risk associated with 

smoking, Philip Morris is pioneering a new 

generation of Reduced-Risk Products 

(RRPs) in South Africa. 

Contrary to what many people believe, 

experts agree that nicotine, while 

addictive, is not the primary cause of 

smoking-related diseases. It is the toxic 

compounds that are found in cigarette 

smoke – most of which are formed when 

tobacco is burned. This has been well 

known for decades, but advances in 

technology and consumer interest in 

innovative products that do not burn 

tobacco, such as e-cigarettes, prove that 

less harmful products could be more than 

just wishful thinking. Alongside 

government efforts to prevent initiation of 

tobacco use and encourage smokers to 

quit, a growing number of public health 

authorities and experts now believe that 

giving smokers access to less harmful 

alternatives can be a major benefit to 

public health. Their approach is often 

referred to as “tobacco harm reduction.” 

Through multidisciplinary capabilities in 

product development, state-of-the-art 

facilities, and industry-leading scientific 

substantiation, PMI is introducing an RRP 

portfolio that meets both a broad 

spectrum of adult smoker preferences and 

rigorous regulatory requirements. 

Two conditions for achieving 

public health benefits 

According to its supporters, tobacco harm 

reduction can play a role for public health 

if new products are developed that meet 

two conditions. First, they need to present 

less risk than continued cigarette use. 

Second, they should be satisfying so that 

smokers switch to them. 

For example, if an alternative product 

was proven to have a significantly lower 

risk profile but was not accepted by 

current adult smokers, its positive impact 

on public health would be very low. 

Governments can play a key role in 

appropriately encouraging the innovation, 

scientific assessment and promotion of less 

harmful alternatives for smokers. A 2014 

report from Public Health England noted 

that, in order to harness the harm 

reduction potential of such alternatives, 

“appropriate regulation, careful 

monitoring, and risk management” are 

needed. 

The US and the EU, among others, have 

already adopted, or are in the process of 

adopting, frameworks for alternatives to 

combustible cigarettes. 

Providing adult smokers with 

reduced-risk alternatives is a priority for 

PMI. Our substantial investment in the 

development of products with the 

potential to reduce risk, our understanding 

of what adult smokers are interested in, 

and the depth of our product development 

and assessment position us to continue to 

be the industry leader as this new category 

evolves. 

There is no reason why Africa should 

not benefit from new, well researched and 

scientifically-underpinned technologies in 

the tobacco sphere. 

PMI is the world’s leading international 

tobacco company, with six of the world’s 

top 15 international brands and products 

sold in more than 180 markets. In 

addition to the manufacture and sale of 

cigarettes, including Marlboro, the 

number one global cigarette brand, and 

other tobacco products, we are 

transforming our business to offer 

products with the potential to 

substantially reduce smoking-related risk. 

We are conducting extensive and rigorous 

scientific studies to determine whether 

we can support claims for such products 

of reduced exposure to harmful and 

potentially harmful constituents in smoke, 

and ultimately claims of reduced disease 

risk, when compared to smoking 

cigarettes. Before making any such claims, 

we will rigorously evaluate the full set of 

data from the relevant scientific studies to 

determine whether they substantiate 

reduced exposure or risk. Any such claims 

may also be subject to government review 

and authorisation, as is the case in the 

USA today. See more at: 

https://www.pmiscience.com

FOREWORD 

HE Erastus 

Mwencha 

Deputy Chairperson 

African Union Commission 

This is an exciting moment in 

Africa’s history where its 

youth holds the key to the 

transformation, integration and 

sustainable development of the 

continent. Their enthusiasm, 

ingenuity and fortitude is remarkable, and 

Africa is blessed with this huge asset, with over 

400 million youths across the continent. It is 

reported that approximately 70% of Africans 

below the age of 35 years, and 200 million 

people between the ages of 15 and 24 years, it is 

expected that by 2025, a quarter of the world’s 

young men and women will be African and by 

2040, Africa will be home to the largest labour 

force in the world. 

Challenges for the youth 

At the moment, young people account for 

three out of every five unemployed and 

underemployed on the continent, with 11 million 

more young people entering the labour market 

each year for the coming decade. For that 

reason, development efforts should focus on 

youth empowerment, otherwise this growing 

population can become a burden for sluggish 

economies or a source of political instability. 

Now more than ever, we have to make 

deliberate, concrete efforts to invest in 

this generation of African innovators, 

change-makers, and leaders. The critical 

question we must ask today is “How do we 

harness the dividend from the continent’s 

youthful population?” 

I am proud to state that the African Union is 

committed to ensuring that every young African, 

benefits from investment opportunities and 

space needed to become a key player in Africa’s 

development agenda. The AU Heads of State and 

Government, in pronouncing 

the theme for the year 2017 as 

“Harnessing the Demographic 

Dividend Through Investments in 

Youth”, challenged us all, African 

institutions and its development 

partners, to reflect and come up with practical 

actions and policies to ensure that every young 

person is accorded the needed opportunity to 

play their part in our continent’s development. 

We cannot afford to lose out on this 

opportunity to strive for greater development 

and inclusiveness. All major developmental 

activities will be geared towards harnessing the 

demographic dividend through increased focus 

and investments in the areas of education, skills 

development, employment creation, promotion 

of children’s rights, early childhood education, 

access to technology and economic 

opportunities and mobilisation of young Africans 

to shape these opportunities. I call on all youth 

to come out and take part in activities and 

initiatives to be undertaken at national, regional 

and continental levels 

We must continue to do more for our youth 

through increased private-public investments 

aimed at stimulating manufacturing, 

agro-processing, the blue and green economies 

and intra-African trade and services, working 

with young people and providing access to 

training, capital and infrastructure. Investments 

made in empowering our youth today will 

determine the development trajectory of 

Africa over the next 50 years, and position 

the continent towards realising the “integrated, 

prosperous and peaceful Africa, driven by 

its own citizens and representing a dynamic 

force in the global arena.”, as envisioned in 

Agenda 2063. • 

We must 

continue to do 

more for our 

youth through 

increased 

private-public 

investments 


FOREWORD 

HE Dr Arikana 

Chihombori Quao 

Ambassador 

African Union Mission to the United States 

Welcome to 

our Africa. 

The land of 

the brave 

Fellow Africans, friends and 

partners of Africa, in my capacity 

as the new Ambassador of the 

African Union Mission to the 

United States, it is my great 

pleasure to welcome you to 

Invest in Africa 2017. 

A distinct honour 

I would like to take this opportunity to extend 

my deepest gratitude to HE Dr Nkosazana 

Dlamini Zuma, the Chairperson of the African 

Union Commission, for bestowing upon me the 

distinct honour and privilege to be the second 

woman Ambassador to lead AU Mission to the 

USA. I am so humbled and honoured to have 

an opportunity to contribute to the 

aspirations of our people for an 

“integrated, prosperous and 

peaceful continent, which is 

driven by its own citizens 

and represents a dynamic 

force in the global arena.” 

Our beloved continent 

has made significant 

strides in the economic, 

social, and political arenas. 

In addition, Africa is 

undergoing major 

transformations as evident 

and articulated in Agenda 2063. 

Agenda 2063 addresses the 

challenges Africa is facing and realises 

the untapped potential within its people. 

Africa is committed to economic growth as 

well as human development. The rule of law, 

good governance, peace and security are at the 

core of its development platform as it aims to 

become a 21st century beacon of hope and 

prosperity in the world. 

This year has been designated by the United 

Nations as the Year of Sustainable Tourism 

for Development. Africa is not an exception in 

this regard. Agenda 2063 recognises tourism as 

a vital opportunity to address issues that cut 

across all sectors of development. Tourism will 

serve as a tool to stimulate job creation, hence 

economic growth. 

I firmly believe that Africa’s great tourism 

potential has not yet been fully tapped. From 

its unique and diverse wildlife, magnificent 

landscapes, beautiful beaches, a rich cultural 

heritage and indigenous populations and ways 

of life and knowledge that have survived for 

centuries, Africa could become the preferred 

tourist destination of the world. 

Meeting aspirations 

In order to achieve sustainable tourism 

development and meet the aspirations of the 

African Union Agenda 2063, I will spare no 

effort to mobilise the support of all key 

stakeholders, including the private sector, civil 

society and the African Diaspora, so as our 

beloved continent becomes the fastest growing 

tourism destination in the coming years. 

Tourism is a priority area, a powerful vehicle 

and strategic tool in our tool box to achieve 

together the Africa We All Want. 

Welcome to OUR Africa. 

The land of the BRAVE.• 


AFRICAN UNION NEWS 

News from 

the Union 

Cindy Hopkins / Alamy 

A brief history of the African Union 

H.E. Dr. Arikana Chihombori Quao African Union Ambassador to the USA 

“Our objective is African union now,” said the first President of Ghana, Kwame 

Nkrumah, during a 1963 speech in front of 31 African heads of state. The speech 

took place in Addis Ababa during the founding of the Organization of African Unity 

(OAU). Years earlier, in 1958, President Nkrumah had already orchestrated a union 

involving Ghana, Guinea and Mali, known as the Union of African States, 

or the Ghana-Guinea-Mali Union. This unique “African tripartite,” a forerunner to 

the OAU, ultimately would give birth to the African Union (AU). 

At first, the OAU Assembly consisted of 32 member states, which had achieved 

independence by 1963. Gradually, 21 more countries joined this continental body 

reaching a total of 53 by the time of the AU’s creation in 2002. Morocco withdrew 

from the OAU in 1984. South Sudan joined the AU as its 54th member on July 27, 2011. 

Today, it is “the Assembly” which is AU’s supreme organ. Heads of State and 

Government from all Member States comprise the organisation. The Assembly 

determines policies, priorities, adopts annual program and monitors the 

implementation of its policies and decisions for its 54 member states. 

Clearly, there is still much work to be done, but the late President Nkrumah 

would no doubt celebrate the successes so far in the realization of his objective 

– Africa for the Africans and “African Union now.” 

Nkrumah Mausoleum, final resting 

place of Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana’s 

first president 

Xinhua / Alamy 

African Union chairperson President Idriss Deby and 

President of Rwanda Paul Kagame show their e-passports 

AU Passport launched in Kigali 

The African Union passport was launched during the 

opening ceremony of the annual Ordinary Session of 

the African Union Assembly of Heads of State and 

Government in Kigali, Rwanda in July 2016. Deemed a 

powerful symbol of Pan-Africanism, the document aims 

to facilitate the free movement of Africans across the 

continent. AU chairperson and president of Chad, Idriss 

Deby stressed the importance of fast tracking integration 

on the continent to achieve socio-economic growth for 

the wellbeing of the African citizens. “I feel deeply and 

proudly a true son of Africa after receiving this 

passport”, he said. 

AU Financing 

Consensus on the need to quickly implement the decision 

on the financing of the African Union was reached by the 

end of a two-day conference of AU Ministers of Finance 

at the AU headquarters in September. 

Among other factors, the consensus reflects the 0.2% 

levy on eligible imports for all members’ states to finance 

the Union, the need to reduce dependency on partner 

funds for implementation of continental development 

and integration programs, and an obligation to relieve 

the pressure on Member States’ national treasuries to 

meet national obligations for payment of assessed 

contributions of the Union. 

AU and OECD sign an MoU 

“The OECD is ready to support Africa’s way forward. I 

am pleased to announce that the OECD and AUC signed a 

new Memorandum of Understanding that will further 

cement our co-operation,” Angel Gurría, OECD 

Secretary-General, said in Paris last year. “This new MoU is 

a starting point for a rejuvenated and broader co-operation, 

and I am counting on both the OECD and the African Union 

to maximise the joint opportunities ahead. 

“The OECD has already strengthened its collaboration 

with African institutions...We are ready to support these 

institutions in measuring the implementation of the SDGs 

as well as Agenda 2063.” 


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FOREWORD 

Florizelle 

Liser 

President and CEO 

Corporate Council on Africa 

Africa is often described as the 

youthful continent, and it is a 

fitting label in more ways than 

one. Modern African nations 

only came of age in the 1950s 

and 60s; many African markets 

are in the middle or just beginning their growth 

spurts; and about 65% of the total population of 

Africa is below the age of 35 years. By 2020, The 

African Union (AU) projects that three out of 

four people on the continent will be on average 

20 years old. 

Africa’s greatest resource 

The greatest resource of any nation is its people 

and as African nations and the AU look towards 

Agenda 2063 and the future of the continent, 

capitalising on this demographic dividend will 

be key. About 10 million young Africans arrive 

each year on the labour market, yet a common 

concern we hear from the private sector is that 

it is challenging to find qualified workers. 

African youth and workforce development 

present an opportunity, which can only be 

fully realised through a strong, committed 

partnership between African governments, 

regional bodies and the private sector. 

The Corporate Council on Africa (CCA) was 

established in 1993 to promote business and 

investment between the United States and the 

nations of Africa. As the leading US business 

association solely focused on the African 

market, CCA occupies a unique position as a 

neutral, trusted intermediary connecting the 

private sector to the governments, business 

leaders, regional bodies and non-profit 

organisations they need to do business 

and succeed in Africa. One of the striking 

commonalities between US and African 

markets is innovation. Technology has driven 

economic growth in these markets and changed 

the way we do business in every sector from 

agribusiness to mobile banking. 

As I begin my tenure as President and CEO of 

CCA, addressing the skills development gap and 

developing a 21st century African workforce are 

key focus areas. This year, CCA will revitalise its 

capacity building program centred on addressing 

the mismatch between higher education and the 

job market. With a new US Administration, it will 

also be important to identify avenues and 

opportunities for greater engagement between 

US and African businesses, and to encourage 

policies and initiatives that support such 

engagement. Thus, we will convene stakeholders 

from diverse industries, academia and the public 

sector for high-level discussions at CCA’s 

upcoming US-Africa Business Summit in 

Washington, DC from 13-16 June 2017, and at a 

range of other issue and sector-specific events 

focused on solutions and results. Under our 

recently acquired tourism arm, the Africa Travel 

Association (ATA), CCA will support initiatives 

and training for young professionals in tourism 

though the ATA Young Professionals Program 

(YPP). This year will also be the beginning of 

CCA’s partnership with the Africa-America 

Institute (AAI), a premier US-based international 

organisation dedicated to strengthening human 

capacity of Africans and promoting the 

continent’s development through higher 

education and skills training, convening activities, 

programme implementation and management. 

I wish you much success at the 28th AU 

Summit, and CCA looks forward to working with 

both US and African businesses to promote 

economic growth through greater US-Africa 

investment and business engagement in 2017.• 


FOREWORD 

Stephen 

Hayes 

Former President & CEO, 

Corporate Council on Africa 

Over the past decade 

especially, the African 

Union has developed into 

an organisation essential 

to the future of the 

continent. The African 

Union has stepped forward and led 

international peace-keeping forces and 

worked to mediate the most intransigent 

of issues. It is difficult, if not impossible to 

imagine Africa without the African Union. 

I am proud that my own organisation 

has a memorandum of understanding with 

the African Union to work together, 

especially on economic matters, and 

I am equally proud that we did this so 

successfully with our US-Africa Summit in 

Addis Ababa in 2016. We need more of this 

type of cooperation. 

A united union 

I suppose the closest comparison to the 

African Union might be the United 

Nations. Its power is limited by the extent 

to which leaders wish to sometimes 

relinquish their own power for the greater 

good. It is a difficult thing to do for any 

leader on any continent. Yet, in some ways, 

we have seen new forms of cooperation 

that often seem more effective than that 

of the United Nations. There appears, at 

times, to be a greater desire to stand 

together and seek more common 

platforms on food and security issues, and 

on the issues of economic development. 

Like any individual or any organisation, 

it is important to examine our own work 

at times, and the newly formed 

commission to do exactly that, to be led 

by President Kagame, is an important 

step. We are in times that will require 

less waste of effort and more efficiency 

in our collective decision making. Climate 

change, whether in the long-term or 

short-term in the form of decades, not 

centuries, is real, and we must make plans 

to adjust to that. Growing population 

pressures with commensurate jobs is a 

major contributing factor to domestic and 

international strife, and Africa is in many 

ways ground zero when it comes to being 

affected by these issues. 

That the African Union recognises this 

is important and that it is actively 

attempting to find solutions is vital to the 

continent and I would argue that it is just 

as vital for the rest of the world. I have 

chosen to spend an important part of my 

life working with Africa because I believe 

Africa is the indicator of Earth’s future. As 

Africa grows, the world will follow. Africa, 

is in a unique position as its development 

can jump over the mistakes of others, 

especially in energy resources and the 

development of infrastructure. However, if 

it repeats the patterns of others, then it 

will simply repeat the mistakes of others. 

This is why the African Union is important. 

It is the only body that can really bring the 

continent together. 

Making a difference 

There are enormous challenges 

immediately ahead for the African 

Union but it is vital that the organisation 

exist and mature so that it can lead and 

make a difference in the world. It will not 

be easy but it is an organization that could 

make such a difference in this critical 

period of civilization. • 

Leaders wish to 

sometimes relinquish 

their own power for 

the greater good 



Sarah Rundell looks at the progress that the African Union 

has made on Agenda 2063 since its launch in 2015. 

Journey to 

Agenda 2063 

continues 

10% in 2002 to 13% in 2014. This is in 

contrast to intra-EU trade, worth 65% 

of the region’s total trade, and trade 

amongst the ASEAN+3 countries 

(the 10 ASEAN members plus China, 

Japan and South Korea), which reached 

45% last year. 

Yet Agenda 2063 has pushed 

progress, including the launch of a 

Tripartite Free Trade Area (TFTA) 

between Africa’s biggest trading blocs, 

the Common Market for Eastern and 

Southern Africa (COMESA), the 

Southern African Development 

Community (SADC) and the East 

African Community (EAC). The goal is 

that by 2017 the TFTA will create the 

continent’s largest free trade zone 

stretching from Cape Town to Cairo. 

Last July, the African Union 

(AU) issued the first ever 

e-passports allowing 

visa-free travel between 

all 54 member states. The 

permits are only available 

at this stage for senior dignitaries but 

the hope is that they will be rolled out 

to all Africa’s one billion population 

soon. Speaking at the time, HE Dr 

Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, Chairperson 

of the AU Commission, heralded the 

initiative as a “step toward the objective 

of creating a strong, prosperous and 

integrated Africa.” 

Agenda 2063 in context 

Countries such as the Seychelles, 

Mauritius, Rwanda, and Ghana are 

already leading on easier intra-Africa 

travel by relaxing visa restrictions and 

in some cases lifting requirements 

altogether. The scene is set to realise 

the dream of visa-free travel for 

African citizens within their own 

continent by 2020. 

It is just one of the goals of Agenda 

2063, the AU’s bold action plan launched 

in 2015 that maps out the continent’s 

socio-economic transformation over the 

next 50 years. Others include 

continent-wide free trade, a high-speed 

train network, an African-wide 

commodity strategy, harnessing the 

river Congo’s hydro resources to close 

the energy gap and new pan-African 

financial institutions. 

A continent-wide free trade area 

combining the free movement of people, 

but also goods and services, would 

transform intra-regional trade – 

something signatories have pledged to 

double by 2022. The difficulties in 

moving goods between African 

countries puts a brake on 

manufacturing and retail businesses 

that struggle to access inputs and 

distribute their goods as widely as they 

would like. According to the 

International Monetary 

Fund (IMF), Africa’s total 

trade has grown rapidly in 

value since 2002, nearly 

doubling in the five years 

from 2009 to 2014. In 

comparison, intra-African 

trade as a proportion of the 

continent’s overall trading 

activities has been slower 

to climb, going from around 

$30b 

The amount 

Japan pledged to 

boost Africa’s 

growth over the 

next three years 

Investing in infrastructure 

The African Development Bank puts 

Africa’s annual infrastructure deficit at 

$50 billion. The expectations are high in 

East Africa. It is the continent’s 

fastest-growing regional economy, yet 

the quality of cross-border road and rail 

links – key to boosting trade flow needs 

to be improved. Inland countries eager 

to connect into regional and global value 

chains, such as Rwanda and South 

Sudan, are still waiting for new railways 

from Kenya and Ethiopia. According to a 

2014 study by the UN Conference on 

Trade and Development (UNCTAD), East 

Africa remains one of the costliest 

places to ship goods in the world due to 

poorly maintained transport links and 

Kenya’s highly congested Mombasa 

port. 

Africa’s foreign partners are 

investing. At the sixth Tokyo 

International Conference on African 

Development (TICAD VI) in August 2016, 

Japan pledged $30 billion to boost 

Africa’s economic growth and 

infrastructure over the next 

three years. But Agenda 2063 

wants Africa to take 

responsibility for its own 

development, too. It means much 

of the financing for its ambitious 

projects must come from within 

the continent. The AU is working 

with Africa’s own financial 

institutions and markets to 

encourage investment, exploring 



KEY FLAGSHIP PROJECTS 

FOR AGENDA 2063 

step toward 

the objective of 

creating a strong, 

prosperous and 

integrated Africa 

DR NKOSAZANA 

DLAMINI-ZUMA 

Chairperson, AU Commission 

President of Chad Idriss Deby 

shows his Africa passport at the 

27th African Union Summit 

sources like diaspora-linked bonds and 

improved tax collection, as well as 

working to halt illicit capital flows. 

National governments are also 

looking to the private sector to finance 

infrastructure with new national laws 

regulating public-private partnerships. 

Agenda 2063 also pledges to create 

an open skies agreement. Research by 

the International Air Transport 

Association estimates that if just 12 of 

Africa’s bigger economies opened their 

skies to one another, fares would fall by 

more than a third and traffic between 

them would soar by 81%. Twelve 

member states have signed up to the 

AU’s programme to implement a single 

air transport market within two years. 

Elsewhere, Common Market for 

Eastern and Southern Africa 

(COMESA) is working on a regional 

framework for a unified airspace in its 

region. 

Achieving Agenda 2063’s offers huge 

opportunities for the continent. If Africa 

continues to build on its achievements 

the dream of an integrated, prosperous 

and peaceful continent is increasingly 

within reach. • 

Africa Union Commission flickr 

INTEGRATED HIGH SPEED 

TRAIN NETWORK 

Connecting all African capitals and 

commercial centres. 

AN AFRICAN VIRTUAL AND 

E-UNIVERSITY 

Increasing access to tertiary and 

continuing education in Africa. 

ESTABLISHMENT OF AN 

ANNUAL AFRICAN FORUM 

Bring together African leaders, private 

sector, academia and civil society. 

ESTABLISHMENT OF THE 

CONTINENTAL FREE TRADE 

AREA BY 2017 

To significantly accelerate growth of 

and double intra-Africa trade by 2022. 

THE AFRICAN PASSPORT AND 

FREE MOVEMENT OF PEOPLE 

Transforming Africa’s laws to relax 

regulations on movement. 

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE 

GRAND INGA DAM PROJECT 

Inga Dam will generate 43,200 MW of 

power to support regional power pools. 

THE PAN-AFRICAN E-NETWORK 

Strategies for transformative 

e-applications and services in Africa. 

SILENCING THE GUNS BY 2020 

Ending all wars, civil conflicts, gender 

based violence and violent conflicts. 

AFRICA OUTER 

SPACE STRATEGY 

This aims to strengthen Africa’s use of 

outer space to bolster its development. 

ESTABLISHMENT OF A 

SINGLE AFRICAN AIR 

TRANSPORT MARKET 

Deliver a single African air transport 

market to facilitate air transportation. 

ESTABLISHMENT OF THE 

AFRICAN CONTINENTAL 

FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS 

Accelerating integration and 

socio-economic development of Africa. 



So many millions of Africans 

live in the global diaspora 

– settled in Japan, Russia, 

Australia, China, India, South 

and North America, and 

Europe – that it is now known 

as the ‘sixth region of Africa’. Development 

and economic scholars have focused their 

few studies of Africans in the diaspora on 

their lives in their host countries, focusing 

particularly on their integration into those 

countries, their feelings of isolation and 

their experience of racial discrimination. 

However, the impact of members of the 

African Diaspora on their home countries, 

particularly on their economies, is a broad 

topic worthy of detailed research that has so 

far been left largely unexplored. 

Building engagement 

with the Diaspora 

Real strides have been made, since the 

African Union held a Global Diaspora 

Summit in South Africa in May 2012, in 

allowing diasporans to impact on economies 

and development in Africa. Five ‘legacy’ 

projects were initiated with great success. 

The African Diaspora Professional Skills 

Database was transferred from the World 

Bank African Diaspora Program and has led 

to the African Diaspora Policy Centre 

(ADPC), which runs many programmes for 

the consolidated development of African 

communities and economies by Africans in 

the diaspora. Similarly, the African Diaspora 

Network (ADN) was initiated in America to 

galvanise diasporans to contribute to the 

development of their home countries’ 

economies. Other organisations include the 

African Diaspora Volunteer Corps through 

the group Opportunities for Africans, which 

trains around 35 young professionals from 

the Diaspora and the AU Member States 

in volunteering and deploys them to the 

countries where their skills are needed. 

The African Diaspora Policy Centre also 

provides shorter workshops for members 

of the Diaspora in Europe on peacekeeping, 

advocacy and lobbying, development and 

policy making. 

Homestrings is a private company that 

helps Africans with a net worth of $1 million 

to invest in African development, whether 

opening businesses in their home country, 

where the profit margins exceed those to be 

gained in their host country, or investing in 

other people’s companies or start-ups. 

Likewise, the African Diaspora Development 

Marketplace (ADM), an AU body, aims to 

help African disaporans to invest in African 

business initiatives. 

1:54 art fair representing 150 

artists from the Africa Diaspora 

Dr Joanne Davis looks at how African diasporans 

interact with their source nations and how the 

Continent can benefit from the sixth region of Africa. 

Diasporans 

and the 

economy 



The African Institute for Remittance (AIR) professionals in the diaspora return to 

was founded before the 2012 Summit to African countries to help with projects and 

investigate remittance practises in Africa. African citizens go to study in the 

The impact of remittances is a major issue. In Netherlands, too. 

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, remittances are African governments may consider 

used to keep business and real estate creating jobs and increasing salaries within 

markets afloat. In the African context, we this sector to allow African scholars to 

need to channel the value of this enormous contribute globally to education and reap 

sum so that it can be used most effectively. the rewards of collaboration, such as 

Two issues need to be addressed 

knowledge transfer. 

immediately. Firstly, African governments We can never return to the development 

should found governmental or bank-based model in which knowledge was imported into 

Money Transfer Offices IIt’s (MTOs) time to safeguard to play the music, Africa; it’s skills time and to light knowledge transfer must 

remittances against private the MTO lights. closure It’s time as a to meet rely on the a transactional Muppets model that centralises 

result of anti-laundering legislation. the Muppet Secondly, Show tonight! African It’s time knowledge to put systems. African 

we need to align the cost of on remittances makeup, it’s to time to citizens dress up are right. the best It’s source of solutions to 

sub-Saharan countries with time other to countries. raise the curtain issues on the within Muppet the African continent, and 

Finally, careful studies should Show be tonight. made of Why do solutions we always instituted come by outsiders without 

the patterns of usage here? and I guess consumption we’ll never so know. an inside knowledge of 

that we can predict where It’s time and to when get things the started the on particular the most context 

money is available. sensational inspirational celebrational do not work. 

Muppetational... This is what we call the Muppet 

The Diaspora and Show! education 

Conclusion 

The first three of eight objectives of the African diasporans are as 

Tigray Development Xxxxxxxxxxx 

Association (TDA), a different and diverse as 

diaspora group, highlight Your tread education must be as light and sure, their as home though countries, your and, 

intrinsically linked path to peacekeeping. 

were upon rice paper. It is most said, of a the Shaolin time, they form 

In the arena of technical priest can skills walk through walls. discrete • social groups in their 

development, recent research shows that the 

extent of African academia published in 

international journals fell to 15% in 2013. 

Fewer Africans are studying at foreign 

universities as there are fewer scholarships 

available. Scholarships permitting African 

students to undertake foreign study should 

be reinstituted to enable enduring mentoring 

relationships. 

The International Organisation 

for Migration (IOM) runs a successful 

programme – Temporary Return of Qualified 

Internationals, now called CD4D (Connecting 

Diaspora for Development) – where 

host countries. But this new 

way of thinking relies on 

Africans to come together as 

a group. This is especially 

true in the contemporary 

context of the United Nations 

Decade for People of African 

Descent (2015–2024) where 

the theme is: ‘People of 

African descent: recognition, justice 

and development’. 

We hope this initial burst of interest 

in the role of Africans in the Diaspora in 

African economies continues to grow. • 

African citizens are the 

best source of solutions 

to issues within the 

African continent 

ukartpics / Alamy Stock Photo 


Orabank, betting on Pan-African banking 

Banks are one of the preferred gateways to Africa for international investors. The most successful are 

those that manage to establish a strong Pan-African footprint so as to diversify the risk and seize the most 

opportunities for growth. 

In the past seven years, Oragroup has 

experienced very strong growth, 

expanding from a presence in five 

countries in West and Central Africa to 

its current Pan-African coverage. Today 

Oragroup is present in 12 countries in 

West and Central Africa (Benin, Burkina 

Faso, Ivory Coast, Gabon, Guinea Conakry, 

Guinea Bissau, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, 

Senegal, Chad and Togo) and straddles 

four monetary areas (UEMOA, CEMAC, 

Guinea Conakry, Mauritania). 

This growth was particularly due to 

the acquisition of Banque Régionale de 

Solidarité (BRS) in 2013. “Since 2009, 

our assets have increased seven-fold 

to reach CFA francs 1,492 billion (€ 2.3 

billion) and customer loans by eight-fold 

to CFA francs 905.2 billion (€ 1.4 billion). 

This acquisition really made us what we 

are today. But this is by no means the 

last step in our expansion!” comments 

Binta Touré Ndoye, CEO of Oragroup. 

Oragroup recently launched a bond issue 

on the local market, aiming to raise 35 

billion CFA francs in two phases. The 

first phase that came to a close in early 

October allowed it to successfully tap 

the market to the tune of 20 billion CFA 

francs. It is going back for the second 

phase in early 2017 to raise the remaining 

15 billion CFA francs. 

Increasingly, its focus is on financing 

SMEs as they represent the heart of 

African economies and the future of 

Africa. “As a banking institution we 

have a duty to finance the real economy 

and the progression of our customers 

in our credit portfolio is a testimony to 

this commitment. In 2015, businesses 

customers have progressed by nearly 

44% after a 40% rise in 2014” says 

Mrs. Ndoye. 

Binta Touré Ndoye was recruited as 

Deputy Managing Director of Oragroup 

in 2015 and began her career with the 

Ecobank Group, where she was 

Managing Director of Ecobank Mali 

(2007), then in charge of the Group’s 

strategic projects (2013). A Malian 

national, Binta Touré Ndoye holds an 

MBA in Finance and International and 

Development Economics (University of 

Central Oklahoma). 

« As a banking institution we have a 

duty to finance the real economy ». 

She is now in charge of the next step 

for Oragroup where she is leading the 

transition from a multipolar banking 

group to a coherent and strategically 

focused entity. 

“Oragroup must now consolidate its 

growth, increase its consistency and 

deploy a corporate strategy based on 

strong values. We want to be a role 

model in Pan-African banking and, 

to accomplish this, we will enhance 

synergies and continue to optimize the 

Group’s skills. We aim to be a pioneer in 

an emerging financial “afro-capitalism” 

that is simultaneously authentic, strong 

and durable. This necessitates network 

expansion, investments in innovative 

tools and potential acquisitions,” argues 

Binta Touré Ndoye. 

Binta Touré Ndoye, 

Oragroup CEO, 

www.orabank.net

FOREWORD 

HE Dr Anthony 

Mothae Maruping 

Commissioner for Economic Affairs 


Agenda 2063 is the African 

blue-print for economic 

transformation. Its formulation 

was based on wide 

consultations with a broad 

spectrum of African 

stakeholders, including the private sector, 

labour, civil society, gender and youth 

organisations and networks, academia, media, 

artists, and diaspora. Within the process of 

elaborating Agenda 2063, 35 national strategic 

frameworks and action plans were studied and 

their contents factored in. Seventeen countries 

submitted written inputs. AU Constitutive Act, 

existing developmental continental frameworks, 

initiatives, programmes, and high-level 

declarations were taken into account. 

Megatrends were studied and situational 

analysis performed. 

The African Vision 

Agenda 2063 states the African Vision. The 

Vision unfolds into seven African aspirations. In 

the First Ten Year Implementation Plan (FTYIP) 

these aspirations further unroll into 20 goals 

and 41 priority areas. FTYIP also has 12 

fast-track (flagship) projects. Indicators are 

near completion, thanks to the team work of 

AUC, NPCA, AfDB and UNECA as well as the 

African statisticians. I particularly laud the 

African statisticians for their invaluable 

contribution in this regard. More work awaits 

them during the setting of base lines and 

monitoring and evaluation. AUC and its 

technical partners look forward to continued 

collaboration of our African statisticians. We 

remain ever indebted to them. The 20 goals of 

Agenda 2063 encompass 

all the 17 Sustainable 

Development Goals (SDGs). 

Integration is core 

Agenda 2063 will guide 

transformation of African 

economies by increasing productive 

capacities, strengthening 

competitiveness, fostering diversification, 

engendering value addition and enabling the 

joining of supply chains by facilitating 

investment in intra-Africa trade with external 

partners. Integration remains the core of 

Agenda 2063. 

There is cause for optimism with Agenda 

2063 and the SDGs. With Agenda 2063 lessons 

were drawn from past endeavours. Its 

formulation has been inclusive and participatory 

(public, private sector and civil society) and thus 

has a stronger sense of ownership and higher 

level of commitment; it has been a bottom-up 

process. Requisite capacity for implementation 

has been assessed and strategies for closing 

the gaps devised. Risk has also been assessed 

and risk mitigation strategies developed. 

Domestication process is integrating contents 

into national and RECs plans ensuring 

implementation. Means of implementation have 

been given due attention. A communication 

strategy has been formulated. A results-based 

approach through clear definition of goals, 

targets, and indicators is an added advantage, 

enabling monitoring and evaluation. 

Current economic and financial challenges 

are spurring member states towards 

economic transformation. • 

There is cause 

for optimism 

with Agenda 

2063 and the 

sustainable 

development 

goals 


AFRICA’S ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT 

Only by investing in a quality childhood and providing 

sexual health and family planning education can Africa 

unleash the potential of its youth, writes Duncan Pieterse 

Africa’s Economic Development 

Investing 

in youth 

The East Asian experience 

taught us that when the 

labour force grows faster 

than the number of 

dependants in a population, it 

can release resources for 

investment in economic development. When 

there are fewer people to support, an 

opportunity emerges for rapid economic 

growth, provided the right enabling 

environment exists. This is known as the 

‘demographic dividend’, which refers to the 

economic growth potential that can occur 

when the share of the working-age 

population (15 to 64) is larger than the 

non-working-age share of the population. 

Africa, with 200 million people between 15 to 

24 years old and the youngest population in 

the world, is poised to harness the 

demographic dividend. 

Harnessing a demographic dividend 

requires governments to invest in the 

capabilities of young people and create an 

enabling environment for inclusive economic 

growth where young people have the rights 

and freedoms to achieve their potential. 

There are four practical steps that can be 

taken to achieve these objectives. First, two 

investments in the capabilities of young 

people are crucial: early investments in their 

human capital and ongoing investment in 

their sexual and reproductive health. 

Second, strategies that ensure economic 

growth is inclusive of young people 

should be prioritised: increasing youth 

employment through demand-side 

interventions and improving access to 

financial services have been shown to be 

effective across the world. 

The remainder of this article elaborates 

on these four practical steps and illustrates 

how they can ensure that countries in Africa 

realise their demographic dividend. Drawing 

on success stories from countries such as 

Ethiopia, Zambia, Rwanda, Ghana, South 

Africa and Kenya highlights the potential for 

solutions to be informed by best practice on 

the continent. 

Increase early investment in 

young people’s human capital 

Recent evidence from neuroscience 

indicates that childhood is a period of 

heightened sensitivity to positive and 

negative influences that can cause 

permanent changes to brain architecture 

and gene expression in a manner that 

influences human skill formation. 

Economists have recently formalised this 

thinking in the human skill formation 


Randy Platt/Getty images 

AU YOUTH 

INVESTMENT 

Africa has the youngest 

population in the world 

On 7-9 November 2016 the 

Department of Human 

Resources, Science and 

Technology, through the 

division in charge of Youth 

Development, conducted a 

three-day workshop on 

youth mainstreaming and 

the demographic dividend 

in Mombasa, Kenya. This 

workshop was based on the 

AU mandate to implement 

the January 2016 Summit 

Assembly decision on 

Accelerating Youth 

Empowerment for 

Sustainable Development 

in Africa and a focus 

on “Harnessing the 

Demographic Dividend 

through Investment in 

Youth,” in 2017. The 

workshop was preceded 

by HE Dr Nkosazana 

Dlamini Zuma launching the 

AUC Youth Mainstreaming 

Guideline, which aims to 

fast-track the on-going 

youth activities at the 

Commission as a path to 

realising the 6th Aspiration 

of Agenda 2063. 



model, which is concerned with how 

skills are formed over the life cycle of an 

individual. The human skill formation 

model is characterised by two key 

features: self-productivity and 

dynamic complementarity. 

Self-productivity means that skills 

produced during one stage persist into 

future periods and dynamic 

complementarity refers to the idea 

that investments in one period are more 

productive when there is a high level of 

capability in an earlier period. 

The key policy implication of these 

two features of the human skills 

formation model is that the highest 

rate of return in youth development 

comes from investing as early as 

possible, from birth through to the age 

of five. Maternal, child healthcare, and 

nutrition programmes should include 

the promotion of responsive and 

nurturing caregiving by mothers; 

support for maternal mental health; and 

social protection through poverty 

reduction strategies that strengthen 

family capacity to provide for children. 

Early childhood development 

programmes for disadvantaged 

children can achieve the following: 

• improve their long-term 

health outcomes; 

• boost their earnings by as 

much as 25%; and 

• generate a rate of return on 

investment of 7–10% through better 

outcomes in education, health and 

economic productivity. 

Early investments in the capabilities of 

children should be supported by 

effective preventative public health 

services as these are essential for the 

youth. The importance of prioritising 

maternal and child health outcomes is 

well-recognised (both outcomes are 

United Nations Millennium Development 

Goals (MDGs)). However, more 

attention needs to be given to 

reducing exposure to infectious and 

parasitic diseases, both of which stunt 

children’s physical growth as well as 

cognitive development, with long-term 

consequences for educational 

attainment and subsequent earnings. 

For example, targeted malaria control 

programmes in Eritrea, Ethiopia, 

Zambia and Rwanda have contributed to 

an overall decrease in maternal and 

infant mortality and a healthier 

populations. 

Increase opportunities 

for youth employment 

Investing in the capabilities, educational 

and health outcomes of young people are 

unlikely to yield a demographic dividend 

unless the youth are absorbed by the 

labour markets of growing economies. 

Since insufficient youth wage 

employment is primarily a demand-side 

problem, labour market demand must be 

a priority to improve employment levels. 

Put simply, economic growth is the 

starting point for generating increased 

opportunities for youth employment. 

Since agriculture represents the 

single largest employer of young people 

in Africa, labour demand will come from 

growth in agriculture or structural 

transformation that generates growth 

opportunities in new sectors. Ethiopia 

has achieved average real GDP growth of 

10.9% between 2004–2014 based on rapid 

expansion of its agriculture and services 

sectors, mainly due to an economic 

strategy focused on promoting 

agriculture and industrialisation 

while delivering substantial public 

infrastructure investment supported 

by effective macroeconomic policy. 

International experience suggests that 

policy certainty, a flexible labour market, 

regional economic integration and 

improvements in the ease of doing 

business can encourage existing firms to 

expand and promote the entry of new 

firms. As the private sector invests and 

grows, jobs are created and the 

government gains tax revenue that can 

support the social spending 

programmes highlighted earlier. 

Young people find it especially 

difficult to find their first job, which has 

a bearing on their future likelihood of 

employment. Therefore, as an economy 

grows, policymakers should ensure that 

demand-side youth employment policies 

are implemented to facilitate the 

school-to-work transition and ensure 

economic growth does not leave young 

people behind. South Africa has 

achieved some success with 

demand-side youth employment policies, 

including: 

• an expanded public works 

programme that provided 1.6 million 

jobs since its inception in 2004; 

• an employment tax incentive where 

the additional costs associated with 

employing young people are lowered 

through a government subsidy; and 

• learnership agreements that provide 

economic growth is 

the starting point for 

generating increased 

opportunities for 

youth employment. 



INVEST IN SEXUAL AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH FOR YOUNG PEOPLE 

For many young people in 

Africa, a chance to realise 

their potential is often 

derailed, particularly for 

millions of girls, who are 

pushed from school and 

subjected to child marriage, 

early and unplanned 

pregnancies, poor access to 

healthcare and limited 

education. Investments in 

reproductive health can: 

• protect the well-being 

of young people; 

• maximise their potential 

for healthy and 

productive lives; and 

• improve social and 

economic development. 

In sub-Saharan Africa, 67% 

of married adolescent 

women who want to avoid 

pregnancy for at least the 

next two years are not using 

any contraceptive method. 

Two investments can 

empower young people to 

make healthy decisions 

about their behaviour. 

Firstly, comprehensive 

sex education can help 

young people delay their 

sexual debut, reduce the 

frequency of unprotected 

sexual activity, reduce the 

number of sexual partners 

and increase the use of 

contraception. Secondly, 

increasing access to family 

planning is a key strategy 

to protect the health of 

adolescent girls and reduce 

unintended pregnancies, 

maternal deaths and 

unsafely performed 

abortions. 

Investing in the sexual 

and reproductive health of 

young people also increases 

returns on investments 

in health, education and 

economic growth. Delaying 

marriage and childbearing 

among adolescent girls 

could help increase school 

enrolment by 20% across 

Africa and the more 

educated a girl is, the 

more likely she is to use 

contraception and avoid 

unintended pregnancies. 

Reducing adolescent 

pregnancy can help 

increase income at the 

individual, family and 

national level. Ghana has 

been able to reduce its 

teen pregnancy rate because 

it implemented an 

adolescent reproductive 

health policy and offered 

reproductive health services 

for youth. The benefits of 

investing in the sexual and 

reproductive health of 

young people are clear – 

it is up to governments 

across the continent to 

prioritise these initiatives 

in their public spending 

programmes. 

iStock images 

financial incentives to firms that 

offer accredited training 

programmes for the youth. 

Improve access to 

financial systems 

Financial inclusion, which refers to all 

initiatives that make formal financial 

services available, accessible and 

affordable and goes beyond improved 

access to credit to encompass enhanced 

access to savings and risk mitigation 

products, is critical to ensure that 

economic growth performance is 

inclusive and sustained. While access to 

financial institutions encourages saving 

and expands access to credit, accessing 

credit through formal financial 

institutions is much more complicated 

for young people, who typically have 

little collateral or have no proven 

creditworthiness. 

New technologies including mobile 

phone payment services, such as 

M-Pesa in Kenya, which allows users to 

deposit, withdraw, transfer money and 

pay for goods and services with a mobile 

device, enable many young people to 

access low-cost financial services. In 

2015, $32.5 billion, representing 

approximately 53% of Kenya’s GDP, was 

transacted through mobile money 

platforms. Looking to the future, mobile 

money technology and the resulting 

financial inclusion can be leveraged to 

support improved outcomes in other 

sectors. Evidence from Kenya, Tanzania 

and Madagascar show that: 

• mobile money can be used to save 

and pay for healthcare services and 

to receive remittances to cover high 

out-of-pocket health costs; 

• electronic payment platforms can 

save healthcare providers the time 

and expense needed to travel to 

cities to cash paycheques and they 

can be used to facilitate timely 

payment of performance-based 

incentives; and 

• mobile money can improve 

operations by reducing the risks and 

costs of distributing cash payments 

for per diems for healthcare training 

providers. 

Deploying these technologies requires 

supportive government regulators 

(including central banks), as well as new 

institutions (for example, consumer 

protection agencies), to ensure that the 

benefits of these systems are accrued as 

widely and sustainably as possible. 

It is estimated that if countries in 

sub-Saharan Africa make the right 

human capital investments, the 

combined demographic dividend could 

be at least $500 billion per year (equal to 

one third of the region’s current GDP) 

for up to 30 years. The evidence 

reviewed highlights the successes 

achieved in Africa that could underpin 

future investments in young people 

across the continent to unlock their 

economic potential and harness the 

benefits of the demographic dividend. • 


Merck perspective 

Prof. Frank Stengenberg-Haverkamp, Ethiopia’s Minister of Health, Minister of Science and Technology, Rasha Kelej and winners of 

UNESCO MARS Best African Researchers 

Another milestone to empower 

women and girls in STEM 

Merck partners with UNESCO and African 

Union to empower women in the field of 

research and healthcare to improve 

women health. 

Merck has announced five winners from 

Kenya, Burkina Faso, Gabon, Uganda and 

Ethiopia for ‘Best African Women 

Researchers Award’ and four winners from 

Botswana, Cameroon, Gambia and 

Zimbabwe for ‘Best Young African 

Researchers Award’ during the recently 

held 2nd UNESCO-Merck Africa Research 

Summit (MARS) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. 

Professor Frank Stangenberg- 

Haverkamp, Chairman of Executive 

Board and Family Board of E. Merck KG 

emphasised “Merck will continue to 

empower young researchers which raises 

the level of scientific research in Africa and 

encourages in particular young women 

researchers to pursue their dreams, work 

for improving access to health solutions 

and make a difference in the continent. 

Moreover, I am very pleased to offer my 

support to motivate female researchers 

and healthcare providers and recognises 

their excellent contribution to fields where 

they are underrepresented”. 

“Merck will provide MARS award 

winners with training opportunities to 

advance their research to the international 

standard. They will also be appointed as 

ambassadors of” MERCK STEM Program 

for Girls” in their own countries through 

several future initiatives will be announced 

in 2017”, explained Merck’s Rasha Kelej 

Chief Social Officer. 

Merck commits to improve 

access to Cancer Care through 

two initiatives: 

MERCK AFRICA ONCOLOGY 

FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM 

In 2016, Merck has announced the first 

“Africa Medical Oncology Fellowship 

Program” for Sub-Saharan African 

countries in partnership with University of 

Nairobi, Kenya and Tata Memorial 

Hospital, India. 

“We are committed to improve 

patient’s access to care all over the world”, 

said Belén Garijo, CEO, Merck Healthcare.

Merck perspective 

HEALTH FACTS 

ASSOCIATED WITH 

INFERTILITY IN AFRICA 

AND DEVELOPING 

COUNTRIES 

According to data from the World 

Health Organization, more than 180 

million couples in developing 

countries (one in every four 

couples) suffer from primary or 

secondary infertility. In sub-Saharan 

Africa, untreated genital infections 

such as gonorrhea and chlamydia 

may be the cause of up to 85% of 

infertility among women. This is 

compared to 33% worldwide, 

emphasising the importance of 

prevention programs in Africa. 

In addition to raising awareness, 

which will benefit future couples, 

Merck started the “Empowering 

Berna” project with the aim to 

support infertile women establish 

their small businesses so they can 

re-build their own independent and 

happier lives. Woman is more than 

a Mother, and “Empowering Berna” 

proves this every day. 

Above: “Being an oppressed infertile 

Maasai Woman is the worst thing that can 

happen to anyone. But now my life has 

changed with the help of Merck, I am 

happy and proud because I can support 

myself. Now I am more than a mother” 

Rose Chiedo; Cancer survivor starting her 

small business with the help of Merck’s 

initiative 

“In Africa, where the number of oncologists 

is very limited, this starts by building 

additional medical capacity to increase the 

number of qualified oncologists across the 

continent.” 

Candidates from Kenya, Uganda, 

Tanzania, Ghana, Botswana and South 

Africa were provided by one year or two 

year medical oncology fellowship 

programme, “We’d like to enroll more 

candidates and engage other countries 

such as Zambia, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Liberia 

and Namibia. We firmly believe this is very 

important step to improve access to cancer 

care in Africa”. emphasised Rasha Kelej. 

“MERCK MORE THAN 

A PATIENT” INITIATIVE 

This initiative aims to empower women 

cancer survivors in Africa through access to 

awareness, health and economic 

empowerment through helping them to 

establish their own small business so that 

they can lead independent and productive 

lives. 

Merck will also help raising awareness 

about cancer and tackling myths and 

stigma associated with the disease. “I 

believe we can together empower our 

communities to access accurate cancer 

information, which should result in 

behavior change coupled with adoption of 

health life style for cancer prevention, early 

detection and care. Merck is providing 

awareness videos about cancer early 

detection and prevention in local languages 

on our social media”, Kelej added. 

MERCK MORE THAN 

A MOTHER 

“Merck more than a Mother” was 

championed by HE First Lady Mrs 

Brigitte Touadera in Central African 

Republic and First Lady Mrs Aisha 

Buhari in Nigeria. The campaign was 

also successfully launched in Kenya, 

Uganda, Cote d’Ivoire and Liberia and 

will expand to other African and Asian 

Countries in this year. 

MERCK MORE THAN A MOTHER 

Merck continues its commitment to 

empower infertile women across the 

continent through access to information, 

health and change of mind-set. 

In some cultures, childless women still 

suffer discrimination, stigma and ostracism. 

An inability to have a child or to become 

pregnant can result in being greatly 

isolated, disinherited or assaulted. This 

often results in divorce or physical and 

psychological violence. 

“Merck more than a mother” will 

support governments to define policies to 

improve access to regulated, safe and 

effective fertility care and address the need 

for interventions to break the stigma 

around infertile women and the necessity 

for a team approach to family building 

among couples. It will also provide practical 

training for embryologists to build fertility 

care capacity in Africa.


iStock photo 

Expanding financial 

services in Africa 

Bisi Lamikanra looks at the benefits of the 

expansion of pan-African banks and how 

international collaboration can drive the 

development of economic services. 

The cross-border expansion of 

Africa-based banks has become 

a dominant trend in the 

continent’s banking landscape. 

Previously, banks were primarily 

domestic, but over the last 

decade, there has been a rapid expansion by 

banks across the region. The pan-African 

expansion, has been largely influenced by the 

improving macroeconomic conditions; banks’ 

strategic push for growth and diversification of 

earnings; growth of African businesses into 

new markets in the regions; and existing 

opportunities in the unbanked population. 



CHALLENGES 

The rapid rise of pan-African 

banks presents significant 

issues and risks. The 

increasing possibility of 

financial contagion is 

becoming a major concern for 

regulators. For example, 

problems in the home 

country, such as perceptions 

of mismanagement or 

reputational risks, could lead 

to bank runs on subsidiaries. 

Similarly, if the operations of 

a subsidiary are relatively 

large compared to the rest of 

the group, economic or 

financial problems in such 

countries could affect the 

home bank. 

As pan-African banks have 

developed in reach and 

complexity, significant 

supervision gaps, governance 

issues, and questions about 

cross-border resolution have 

emerged. There exists a 

misalignment between the 

interest of home and host 

country regulators, and this is 

exacerbated by the 

differences in the size of the 

banks and economies. The 

greater the asymmetry in 

economic size between home 

and host, the less likely a 

financial institution’s strategy 

will consider the host 

country’s needs and the 

greater the threat to financial 

stability in the host country if 

problems emerge at home. 

Another potential threat to 

regional financial stability is 

that African countries are at 

different development levels 

with respect to their financial 

sector regulation and 

supervision standards and are 

at varying stages of the 

implementation of 

international standards; for 

example, some countries have 

implemented Basel II 

standards, whereas for others 

it is still a work in progress. 

South African and Nigerian banks have 

followed their corporate clients across borders 

as they expand their footprints across Africa. 

For example, Standard Bank plans to expand to 

francophone Africa based on existing client 

interest. The bank plans to open a corporate 

and investment banking service in Cote 

d’Ivoire. Also, banks’ diversification strategies 

are driving their expansion activities. Following 

the recapitalisation of Nigerian banks in 2005, 

banks such as United Bank for Africa (UBA), 

Guaranty Trust Bank (GTB) and Access Bank 

began to leverage their new capital to expand 

their franchise across Africa. New entrant in 

the market, Atlas Mara, is creating a 

pan-African bank by acquiring existing African 

banks. Through this, it is able to pursue a 

strategy of increasing its geographic footprint 

to drive growth and using economies of scale 

to provide synergies and diversify risk. 

Pan-African banks are headquartered in 

various countries, ranging from large banking 

markets like Angola, Kenya, Nigeria and South 

Africa, to smaller markets like Togo, Mauritius, 

and Namibia. These banks have created an 

extensive network of footprints across various 

countries in Africa to drive financial services 

expansion and economic integration in the 

continent. According to the International 

Monetary Fund (IMF), there are seven major 

pan-African banks with a presence in 10 or 

more countries. 

Alongside physical presence, pan-African 

banks also have considerable economic 

significance beyond their home countries. A 

number of these banks can be considered as 

systematically important banks in their host 

countries as they hold a significant share of 

total assets. According to Beck (2014), Ecobank 

holds more than 10% of total assets in 13 

African countries, Standard Bank in nine 

countries, and BMCE in five countries. 

Most pan-African banks have adopted two 

basic business models: expansion from a 

dominant home base; the other, a diversified 

structure or network. 

For banks in the first group, such as 

Standard, the home bank plays a dominant 

role, with subsidiaries contributing less 

than 20% to total assets. In the second group, 

the network is more important, as the home 

bank is one among many, with the possibility 

of the largest bank being located in a different 

country. An example is Ecobank, which 

has its largest subsidiary in Nigeria. As 

cross-border banking grows, the dominance 

of the home group reduces in the 

group dynamics. 

Standard Bank Building 

in Cape Town with 

Table Mountain in the 

background 



iStock 

Benefits and impact 

The activities of pan-African banks have 

helped to increase competition, improve 

efficiency, drive product innovation and 

advance financial inclusion and deepening. 

According to the KPMG 2016 Africa Banking 

Customer Survey, 

customers 

customers primarily want their 

banks to be more innovative, and 

to provide high-quality service 

and greater convenience. 

primarily want 

their banks to be 

more innovative, 

and to provide 

high-quality 

service and 

greater 

convenience. 

Some pan-African 

banks are already in tune with their customers, 

and are already satisfying this need. Standard 

Bank, the largest pan-African bank by asset 

size, recently developed a pan-African mobile 

application that provides a single view of the 

bank customers’ banking. The mobile 

application enables customers to open bank 

accounts online, make transfers across 

borders, trade on various stock exchanges, and 

start homeowner insurance. With Ecobank 

Regional Cards, customers can affordably 

access their money at Ecobank branches 

across the 36 countries of operation. United 

Bank for Africa (UBA) is using digital banking 

to drive banking penetration among the 

unbanked and underbanked across Africa. 

The bank currently has 20 e-banking 

products across card, ATM, POS, internet 

and mobile banking. 

In driving financial inclusion and 

deepening, the pan-African banks provide 

financial intermediation to unserved SMEs and 

individuals. In serving the underbanked 

population, pan-African banks have introduced 

agent and mobile banking, and expanded 

microfinance operations. Ecobank’s mobile 

money service generated a transaction 



volume of $48 million from a user base of 

215,938 in 10 countries. Through its 

microfinance partnerships, the bank promotes 

the financial inclusion of micro-businesses and 

low-income individuals. Currently, through 

these partnerships, the bank serves 1.7 million 

low-income individuals and 1.5 million 

micro-entrepreneurs. 

Pan-African banks are also able to drive 

operational efficiency across the various 

countries they work in by consolidating certain 

support services. For example, Ecobank 

created a shared services and technology 

subsidiary that provides a technology 

infrastructure and platform for the Group. This 

ensures a seamless banking experience for 

consumers, and greater efficiency and cost 

control for the bank. 

Through their expansion activities, it is also 

expected that pan-African banks can facilitate 

upgrades in the quality of financial supervision 

and regulation, for example, IFRS accounting 

and Basel II/III, in host countries. Generally, 

pan-African banks have been beneficial to 

the African financial industry. At the same 

time, the rapid expansion of pan-African 

banks poses oversight challenges that, if 

unaddressed, may increase systemic risks. 

Looking forward 

As the growth trend for pan-African 

banking continues to increase, and pan-African 

banks continue to engage more in product 

development and innovation, their contribution 

to financial deepening will become more 

significant, and the number of countries in 

which they are systematically important is 

also likely to increase. 

In ensuring the gains from pan-African 

banking are sustained, well-functioning 

regional or pan-African financial 

infrastructures must be developed alongside 

improved supervisory collaboration across 

various bank regulators. 

The existence of national and regional 

financial infrastructures – efficient payment 

and settlement systems, credit rating 

agencies and credit information systems, 

including comparability of credit information 

across countries, and dispute resolution 

and consumer protection mechanisms – are 

necessary for reaping the benefits of 

pan-African banks expansion. To aid the 

region’s financial stability, payment and 

settlement systems need to be consistent 

across countries to avoid payment 

difficulties. Examples of cross-border 

integration of payment and settlement 

systems include the West African Economic 

and Monetary Union (WAEMU), the East 

African Payments System (EAPS) 

(launched in 2013) and the recent introduction 

of a settlement system for regional 

transactions in the Southern African 

Development Community (SADC). 

The rise of pan-African banks raises the 

risk of financial contagion across borders. 

There exists a need to improve banking 

sector oversight and strengthen regulatory 

frameworks as financial markets become more 

integrated. This can be achieved by developing 

a cooperative framework that consolidates 

a view of the owner operations and risks 

faced by banking groups. This involves the 

establishment of individual supervisory 

colleges and the continuous exchange 

of information that is outlined in 

memorandums of understanding between 

regulators and supervisors. 

Increasing the resilience and transparency 

of pan-African banking groups would require 

an improvement in the flow of information 

between regulators and cross-border banks, as 

well as the harmonisation of regulatory 

supervision to ensure that pan-African banks 

operate cost effectively across borders. • 

$48mN 

The transactional 

volume of Ecobank’s 

mobile money service 

generated across 10 

countries. 

MAJOR PAN-AFRICAN BANKS BY GEOGRAPHIC FOOTPRINT 

36 

25 

17 

20 20 

15 

Eco Bank Standard Bank BMCE UBA *BSIC BCP 

7 

19 

13 14 

2008 2013 

3 

11 

Source: Bank Annual Reports; *BSIC figures are for 2011 and 2015 


Shared Growth - using our assets and expertise to develop 

commercial solutions to the challenges facing society 

After a decade of economic growth, Africa’s economies are still 

struggling to realise a more inclusive prosperity, and much of the 

continent’s population continues to lag behind on various indicators 

of human development. 

With this in mind Barclays Africa is leading a shift from traditional 

grant making and corporate responsibility programmes, towards 

an integrated approach that delivers both shareholder and social 

returns. By embracing a philosophy of shared value, we are seeking 

to more deliberately apply our substantial resources – both assets 

and expertise – to unlocking solutions to social challenges through 

innovative products, services, and partnerships. This is Shared 

Growth. 

By tackling social challenges through commercial business models, 

Barclays Africa is able to offer self-sustaining and scalable solutions 

that increase access to education and employment opportunities 

through skill building, support small and medium enterprises (SMEs) 

that help grow the economy, and provide wider, more convenient 

access to appropriate financial services in our communities. 

Forging strong public-private partnerships is key to creating shared 

value that can deliver maximum impact and reach the greatest 

number of people across the continent. As such we engage and 

work with like-minded partners in business, government, academia 

and the non-profit sector to leverage its expertise and blended 

resources. 

Our Shared Growth strategy therefore focuses on three key areas 

where we as a business can have the greatest impact: 

1. Education and Skills Development – Africa has the youngest 

population in the world with an estimated 50% aged between 

15 and 24. Nearly half of all youth on the continent are not 

enrolled in any form of education, employment or training. We 

have committed $101m* over the next three years to support 

education and skills development, targeting youth in the 10 

countries where we operate, and are implementing a number of 

initiatives as part of this investment: 

• ReadytoWork, our free, online and face-to-face pan-African 

employability initiative aims to upskill young people who 

are setting out to find employment or create selfemployment 

through learning material that covers work, 

people, money and entrepreneurial skills. 

• Our Scholarship programme, which launched in 2016 in 

partnership with several universities, supports and facilitates 

access to quality education for students who would 

otherwise not be able to pursue and complete their studies 

due to the unaffordability of fees, and lack of access to 

funding. 

• Our capacity building programmes for education institutions 

and agencies seek to improve the administration of schools 

by providing financial management and governance training 

to Department of Basic Education staff and School Governing 

Body Members. 

2. Enterprise Development – On average, SMEs account for 

50% of the total labour force in Africa. The SME sector is critical 

to enabling economic growth. By offering them innovative 

financial solutions and business development support services 

(through our Enterprise Development Centres, incubation/ 

acceleration programs, and lending platforms), we are nurturing 

the entrepreneurs of tomorrow and have committed to raise 

$94m* with the purpose of supporting Africa’s growing and 

diverse SME sector. 

3. Financial Inclusion – Africa currently has the highest financial 

exclusion rates in the world. Approximately one in four adults 

has access to a formal bank account, and an estimated 326 

million adults in Africa remain unbanked. We are focusing on 

enabling digital and non-digital access to underserved 

consumers through real banking and value-add products and 

services to promote wider more convenient access to financial 

services. 

We are committed to Africa and its people and we will continue to 

put into practice the principles that drive our vision of Shared Growth 

and prosperity. 

For more information visit our website at 

http://www.barclaysafrica.com/barclaysafrica/Citizenship 

*Average rand-USD exchange rate as at July 2016 

Barclays Africa Group Limited is authorized as a bank controlling company by the South African Reserve Bank. Registered in South Africa. Registration number is 1986/003934

AFRICAN UNION 

MISSION TO THE USA 

HE Dr Arikana Chihombori Quao 

Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, 

African Union Mission to the USA 

As the African Union Ambassador to the USA, I have 

the pleasure and honor to welcome you to our Africa, 

a magical continent as beautiful as its people. 

- COMING SOON - 

THE GRAND AFRICA TOUR 2017 

A guided tour of Africa from Cape Town to Cairo 

Come join us; for an EXCITING ADVENTURE OF A LIFETIME 

AKWABA!! 

KARIBUNI!! 

DUMELA!! 

AHLAAN BIKOM!! 

WAMUKELEKILE!! 

FOR INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT US: 

EMAIL: au-washington@africa-union.org 

PHONE: (+202)3421100 

CAIRO 

CAPE TOWN

FOREWORD 

HE Dr Elham 

Mahmoud 

Ahmed Ibrahim 

Commissioner for Infrastructure & Energy 


With the theme of the 

summit being 

“Harnessing the 

Demographic Dividend 

through Investments 

in the Youth”, it is 

imperative that we focus our attentions on 

education. Policymakers emphasise that ICT in 

education has a multiplier effect throughout 

the education system, by enhancing learning 

and providing students with new sets of skills; 

by reaching students with poor or no access 

(especially those in rural and remote regions); 

by facilitating and improving the training of 

teachers; and by minimising costs associated 

with the delivery of traditional instruction. 

A brave new world 

The world has changed more over the last 

50 years than it changed in the 200 years 

before that, and this is largely owing to the 

technological revolution we find ourselves in. 

While the development of traditional networks 

is needed to cover all areas, we also have to 

accompany the industrial society that has 

moved into an era of advanced technological 

innovation, affecting the way nations run their 

businesses, their institutions and lead their 

lives. One of the areas in which these 

technological advances are dramatically 

influencing people’s lives is information 

technology and telecommunications – hence 

the claim that we are in a ‘digital revolution’ that 

is driving us towards an ‘information society’. 

It has become clear that the continent 

benefits when member states work together. 

A review of infrastructure-sharing experiences 

found that developing countries can save 

billions and speed universal 

broadband access by sharing 

infrastructure. These savings 

can be obtained both through 

sharing telecom infrastructure 

(such as ducts, fibres and masts) 

as well as sharing with other utility 

infrastructure such as roads, power 

grids, fuel pipelines and rail lines. 

The Program for Infrastructure 

Development in Africa (PIDA) provides a 

common framework for African stakeholders 

to build the infrastructure necessary for more 

integrated transport, energy, ICT and transboundary 

water networks to boost trade, 

spark growth and create jobs. PIDA will allow 

countries to be the primary beneficiaries to 

meet forecast demand for infrastructure 

services and boost their competitiveness by 

increasing efficiencies, accelerating growth, 

facilitating integration in the world economy, 

improving living standards, and unleashing 

intra-African trade 

In addition to looking at new ways of 

developing infrastructure, reinventing the 

way we use energy has to be at the top of our 

priority list. Renewable energy is a natural 

choice for Africa given its vast available 

renewable energy resources. The Sun Belt 

covers most of Africa, oceans and seas 

surround the whole continent and over 80% 

of respondents in a survey cited Africa’s wind 

and solar resources as a strong driver for 

renewables deployment. Renewable energy 

is also attractive especially in Africa, as it is 

relatively quick and cheap to deploy on a small 

scale in remote areas compared with fossil 

fuels or expansion of networks. • 

reinventing 

the way we use 

energy has to 

be at the top 

of our priority 

list 


Engie perspective 

Sustainably investing in Africa and 

preparing the future Energy System 

The world is currently going through 

an energy revolution towards a less 

carbon-intensive, more decentralized 

energy supported by digital solutions. 

ENGIE has integrated the challenges of 

this revolution into its strategy. At the 

beginning of 2016, the Group redesigned 

its overall organisation by focusing on the 

different territories. Each geographic 

division covers all five of the Group’s 

businesses (electricity, natural gas, energy 

services to territories, companies and 

individuals) in a given area. Africa is a rich 

and heterogeneous continent with a 

definite potential for economic growth 

and at a turning point in its history. A 

business unit has therefore been 

dedicated to the African continent which 

is operational since 

1 January 2016. 

The Group’s presence in Africa 

is mainly in northern and southern 

Africa which has 25-30% of the 

population but accounts for 75% of its 

energy consumption. Today, through our 

various businesses we have a significant 

presence in Morocco, Algeria, Egypt and 

South Africa. 

ENGIE’s ambition in Africa is to go 

further and to break into a succession of 

eight to 10 countries and build a significant 

presence. We develop our businesses, in 

particular the production of electricity, 

from renewable energies and natural gas. 

ENGIE also provides energy services to 

industrial and tertiary companies. Finally, 

for the rural areas, 

we want to bring decentralised energy 

solutions in order to meet the 

considerable expectations of the 

populations. Electricity is a social and 

economic necessity. If the weight of 

electricity in GDP is at the most 5%, then 

100% of the economy depends on it. 

Africa’s challenges 

Africa suffers from a general deficit in 

production means with around 620 million 

people in need of electricity. Sub-Saharan 

Africa, excluding South Africa has 53,000 

MW connected to the grid, the equivalent

Engie perspective 

Above: Power 

Corner - mini-grid 

Left: Tarfaya – 301 

MW wind farm 

of Portugal. A lack of access to the 

network, particularly in rural areas, hamper 

the development and could be a catalyst 

for a rural exodus. 

However, ENGIE believes that 

Africa’s access to energy is at a turning 

point. There are definitely a number of 

positive evolutions that can be identified. 

Some African countries have developed 

excellent regulations which could serve 

as a benchmark for other countries. A 

stable regulatory framework attracts 

foreign investors and industries. These 

will serve as an accelerator for the 

national development. 

Another factor is the structural decline 

in the production costs of renewables 

particularly in wind and solar. Investors 

nowadays look at renewable energies as a 

low-risk and attractive investment to add 

to their portfolio provided that the Power 

Purchase agreements are solid. Moreover 

it is crucial that investments should be 

made in technologies which are the most 

cost efficient, taking into account the local 

availability of RES (solar irradiation, water, 

wind, biomass, storage) and the local 

conditions. We need a market design that 

optimises and secures the investments in 

RES, both centralised and off-grid and to 

have tariffs which are full cost reflective. 

Africa will indeed need both 

centralised and decentralised energy 

solutions. As baseload is required, the 

mix of solutions will depend on the 

progress of storage systems. 

ENGIE aims at further developing its 

centralised solutions. Currently we have a 

portfolio of thermal and renewable assets. 

We built Tarfaya (301 MW), Africa’s largest 

wind farm to date. In South Africa ENGIE 

operates Aurora Wind Power, a 98 MW 

wind park and 2 PV plants of 21 MW. We 

are constructing Kathu, a 100 MW 

Concentrated Solar Power plant. ENGIE has 

a long-standing gas expertise, particularly 

in Algeria and Egypt (E&P and LNG). Within 

the gas value chain we are examining 

opportunities for developing infrastructure 

and gas-to-power installations. 

The changing energy world also 

creates a particularly favourable 

environment for the development of 

energy services in Africa. For engineering 

and consulting, ENGIE has a historical 

presence on the continent via its subsidiary 

Tractebel. With regard to facility 

management and energy efficiency 

services, we have built over the years 

strong positions in Morocco and Algeria. 

Advancement of new technologies 

will give a boost to decentralised power 

generation for isolated companies and 

rural villages. At ENGIE we are looking at 

several business models for this. 

PowerCorner is ENGIE’s easy-to-set up 

standalone containerised energy solution 

for rural village electrification. It includes 

generators, PV systems and lithium ion 

batteries. The first PowerCorner has been 

installed in a Tanzanian village in which 

customers pay for electricity via mobile 

money. Next to that we launched a plan 

to deploy solar kits in several African 

countries and we want to optimize the 

supply of electricity to telecoms 

infrastructure in Africa. 

Improved technology, comprehensive 

centralised and decentralised legal 

frameworks, capex reduction, access to 

finance and integration of solutions in 

digital platforms will be decisive factors for 

the success of rural electrification in Africa. 

With ENGIE we can bring our technical, 

legal, financial and institutional skills. 

Local anchorage and the development 

of a resolutely partnership-based 

approach with African communities, 

clients and governments is a priority. 

We want to listen to and understand 

the needs of our stakeholders in order 

to best respond to them. 

Africa faces huge demands for 

energy and infrastructure . As a company 

we will make the necessary investment 

decisions that will deliver sustainable 

solutions in a controlled risk environment 

to achieve our global goal of providing 20 

million people with electricity by 2020. 

ENGIE has been present in Africa for 

over 50 years, where it operates in the 

fields of electricity, natural gas and 

services. ENGIE is also present through 

its solidarity investment fund, “ENGIE 

Rassembleurs d’Énergies”, which invests 

in sustainable energy access projects for 

vulnerable populations. 

www.engie-africa.com 

Contact 

ENGIE Africa 

1, place Samuel de Champlain 

Faubourg de l’Arche 

92390 Paris La Défense Cedex

POWER, ENERGY & INFRASTRUCTURE 

Power to 


Power, Energy & Infrastructure 



Pamela Whitby explores the massive potential for renewable 

energy in Africa and the opportunity to leapfrog 

technologically and lead the way in a green energy 

is challenging other 

countries, and even 

continents, in both the North 

and South, in the race 

towards delivering energy 

“Africa 

from 100% renewable 

resources.” This is the view of Dr Youba Sokona, who 

has recently been appointed to lead the Independent 

Delivery Unit (IDU) of the African Renewable Energy 

Initiative (AREI). 

Sokona, who attended the United Nations (UN) 

Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP22) 

in Marrakech in November 2016, says: “It is 

remarkable to see how much attention, traction and 

support AREI has received since launching in Paris 

last year.” 

The outcomes of the 2015 COP21 in Paris, where 195 

countries signed the first ever legally binding climate 

deal, have been well documented. The Paris Agreement 

aims to limit warming to “well below 2°C above 

pre-industrial levels” and “to pursue efforts to limit 

the temperature increase to 1.5°C” with action to start 

from 2020. However, in 2016, according to the World 

Meteorological Organization (WMO), global 

temperatures are running at 1.2°C above pre-industrial 

levels and set a new record-breaking high for the third 

year running, leaving scientists questioning whether 

the agreement has gone far enough. 

Although the threat of climate change is not 

unique to Africa, with over two-thirds of the 

continent’s population still without electricity access, 

it can play a pivotal role in leapfrogging the rest 

68% 

Of people in 

Africa are 

still without 

electricity 

Two gentlemen installing a 160W 

photovoltaic / solar panel on the roof 

of a hospital in East Africa. 

Randy Plett/Getty images 



of the world to a greener, more sustainable future. 

With AREI, this is a goal that Africa’s leaders 

across all echelons of society have thrown their weight 

behind, and in Paris came what Sokona argues “may 

be one of the most ambitious undertakings coming 

out of the climate talks”. By 2020, Africa’s aim is to deliver 

an additional 10GW from renewable energy alone and a 

further 300GW by 2030; this, bearing in mind, that the 

energy capacity of the continent today stands at 150GW. 

Step by step 

So one year on from the groundbreaking COP21 begins the 

hard graft to deliver on these bold targets and the core 

transformative objectives of AREI: to put people and 

energy access first, while also combating the growing 

climate change crisis. 

“In Africa, the biggest challenge is still one of access 

but the continent also needs energy to fuel 

industrialisation [many countries are growing at over 5%] 

and job creation. At the bank, we see green energy as part 

of the solution,” says Alex Rugamba, Director of Energy, 

Environment and Climate Change at the African 

Development Bank (AfDB). 

As one of AREI’s main funders, the AfDB, appointed by 

the AU to act as a trustee in the initiative and to host the 

IDU, has already pledged $12 billion to support Africa’s 

green energy projects. Backing has also come from 

Germany ($2.1 million) and France 

($6.3 million), and at COP22, United States Agency for 

International Development (USAID) awarded a second 

$11 million tranche of funding to fulfill its overall 

commitment of $20 million. 

“My sense that this share [of the bank’s investment in 

renewables] will increase progressively as we go forward. 

We certainly see renewables as integral to our growth 

strategy as we move ahead,” Rugamba says. It is reported 

that bank’s investment is expected to leverage $45–$50 

billion from the private sector. 

One year in, Sokona says the IDU is currently being 

staffed so that work can begin in earnest to support the 

diverse sets of public, private and civic stakeholders 

across the continent. “Our aim is to develop 

transformative, ‘programmatic’ approaches to renewable 

energy investments,” he explains. “While we are looking 

at the current pipeline of renewable energy projects and 

will assess which of these are in line with AREI criteria, 

the overriding focus of the initiative is to help Africa 

develop and fund comprehensive, policy-oriented solutions 

that can meet the real needs of people, communities and 

the productive sectors.” 

Among the steps needed will be to: develop synergies 

between existing and future renewable projects; build 

multi-stakeholder partnerships; promote regional 

integration; and harness geospatial and economic 

information relating to continent-wide endowments. 

“It’s still early days but with AREI’s delivery unit 

now being rationalised there is a lot of positive 

momentum,” says Rugamba. 

Abundant resources, significant challenges 

Home to some of the hottest, wettest and windiest parts 

Jeffreys Bay Wind Farm at dawn in South Africa 

as we scale up investment 

we will need to have a 

corresponding effort to 

increase skills capacity 

ALEX RUGAMBA, 

Director of Energy, Environment and 

Climate Change at the African 

Development Bank (AfDB) 



TOWARDS AN 

EARTH-FRIENDLY AFRICA 

$12bn 

AfDB’s commitment 

to renewable energy 

150GW 

Africa’s current energy 

capacity from all resources 

10GW 

Renewable energy 

targeted for delivery by 2020 

300GW 

To be generated by 2030 from 

renewable energy resources alone 

300m MW 

The potential for solar 

photovoltaic on the continent 

250m MW 

Is blowing in the wind 

Source: AU, IRENA, World Bank, AfDB 

EPA/Nic Bothma/Alamy 

of the world, Africa has no shortage of renewable energy. 

But harnessing these effectively poses some challenges. 

According to the International Renewable Energy 

Agency (IRENA), one significant barrier to policymakers 

and project developers is a lack of geospatial and 

economic data relating to country specific energy 

resources. A 2015 analysis of 21 countries states that 

“about half lack even basic renewable energy resource 

assessments”. It continues: “The ability to identify 

priority, low-regret renewable energy development 

options that satisfy multiple stakeholder concerns is 

crucial for African countries with limited financial and 

institutional resources for energy planning and 

development”. 

According to Sokona, finding synergies with 

existing and future renewable energy projects will 

be a focus of AREI’s work. 

Not unique to renewables, but to the energy sector as 

a whole, is the skills shortage. The AfDB’s New Deal on 

Energy for Africa efforts are underway to develop skills 

and today there are five support centres of excellence 

across the continent. “From welders to technicians and 

engineers, there are a whole range of skills that are 

needed, and as we scale up investment we will need 

o have a corresponding effort to increase skills 

capacity,” Rugamba says. 

Another renewable challenge is the ability to ensure 

that tariffs are competitive enough for the project to be 

viable. In March 2008, for example, South Africa launched 

its Renewable Energy Feed-in Tariff (REFIT), which 

proved to be an important catalyst for driving interest in 

renewables by entrepreneurs and private investors both 

nationally and globally. According to a State of Energy 

report released by South Africa’s Department of Energy, 

by late 2015 REIPPPP had attracted R53.2 billion in foreign 

direct investment and financing into South Africa across 

all bid windows. 

Getting renewable energy onto the national grid, as 

well as the ability to store it, are other technical hurdles, 

but these are becoming easier as technology develops, 

says Rugamba. A major advantage of CSP, for example, 

over other renewable technologies like wind and 

photovoltaic is its ability to convert sunlight into energy 

that can easily be stored and subsequently used for power 

generation when demand is higher. 

Whether Africa’s renewable energy story becomes 

world leading remains to be seen. In 2017, with sunshine 

on their backs and the wind propelling them forward, 

African leaders have a responsibility to keep the 

renewable flame burning. • 



Investing in 


For economic, technological and indeed social growth, 

infrastructure is key. With the right funding allocated to key 

development cornerstones, African industry could flourish 

Trade and Development Bank (TDB), formerly known 

as PTA Bank, is an African Regional Development 

Financial Institution established in 1985. The bank’s 

mandate is to finance and foster trade,socioeconomic 

development and regional economic 

integration across its member states. Although TDB 

is an institution of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern 

Africa (COMESA), its membership is open to Non-COMESA states, 

non-regional countries as well as institutional shareholders. It 

offers a broad range of products and services, across the private 

and public sectors, including debt, equity and quasi-equity as well 

as guarantees. TDB’s investments cut across agriculture, trade, 

industry, infrastructure, energy and tourism, among others, and 

are made on a commercial basis and sustainability principles. 

In view of Africa’s infrastructure deficit, which is estimated 

to be approximately $90 billion every year for the next decade, 

and the critical role it plays in the economic development of 

Member States, TDB has expanded its intervention in 

infrastructure finance in the last few years. Between 2010 and 

2015 alone, the bank provided project finance funding in the sum 

of $714.9 million to infrastructure projects in the region. 

Infrastructure projects financed by the bank are in three main 

sub-sectors: energy, ICT, and transport and logistics. 

In the energy sub-sector, the bank financed power generation 

from renewable energy sources, contributing to access to 

electricity in the region and improving the livelihoods of citizens. 

Investments in various sectors 

The bank’s intervention in the ICT sector, among others, includes 

financing of fibre infrastructure, connecting its member states to 

the web, improving technological advancements and contributing 

to access and affordability of internet services. 

In the aviation space, TDB has provided financing for African 

airlines such as Ethiopian Airlines, Kenya Airways and RwandAir. 

TDB financed the purchase of aircrafts and also in some cases 

availed liquidity support for the operation of the airline. These 

investments have contributed to the expansion initiatives of 

$714.9mN 

provided by the 

Trade and 

Development 

Bank (TDB) in 

project finance 

funding, 

between 2010 

and 2015 to 


projects in the 

COMSEA region. 



iStock/deldew 

the energy projects will 

facilitate provision of quality 

education, which is vital in 

building human capital 

Katse Dam in Lesotho 

various African airlines to increase and modernise their fleet, open 

up new routes and increase frequency of flights within Africa. 

TDB projects are closely aligned to the Sustainable Development 

Goals (SDG). This includes TDB’s work and efforts in providing 

affordable and clean energy; climate mitigation initiatives; industry 

innovation and infrastructure; quality education; increase 

employment opportunities in the region and economic growth. 

The Lake Turkana Wind Power Project in Kenya and Hydromax 

Power Plant in Uganda (projects co-financed by the bank) are a 

case in point, with the achievement of climate adaptation and 

mitigation actions. Furthermore, energy projects contribute 

towards ensuring generation and distribution of power to various 

population groups of African citizens in the Eastern and Southern 

African region. The availability of affordable and reliable power in 

turn has an effect on the establishment and operations of 

industries and factories. These industries provide employment 

opportunities and contribute towards economic growth. For 

instance, the bank’s financing towards Ndola Energy has helped 

to meet the deficit in power supply in Zambia. The energy projects 

contribute to the sustainable development goal of establishment of 

industries, innovation and infrastructure. 

In Kenya, the supply of adequate electricity to the national grid 

will contribute towards ensuring that there is adequate supply of 

electricity to public schools. The government of Kenya is 

implementing a programme of connection of electricity supply to 

all public schools. The schools will be implementing learning using 

digital platforms – referred to as the Laptop Project. Therefore, the 

energy projects will facilitate provision of quality education, which 

is vital in building human capital, thus leading to sustainable and 

inclusive growth in the region. 

The bank’s infrastructure projects have also created 

employment opportunities in the regions they are located, creating 

27,612 direct employment opportunities. When the contractors and 

suppliers to the projects are considered, the number rises to 81,973 

jobs. Employment opportunities for female employees within the 

project are 7,347 and when contractors and suppliers are 

considered employment offered to women are 25,513. 

The Trade and Development Bank is building increased capacity 

in addressing the infrastructure deficit in Africa by investing in key 

sustainable and socially inclusive regional projects. The bank will 

expand its outreach and intervention in its member states in 

Eastern and Southern Africa. • 



Oil and gas discoveries 

are plentiful in both the 

frontier and established 

exploration regions 

of Africa. Resource 

owners are anxious to 

implement developments in the field to 

power their nations and boost their 

revenue flow. A host of hydrocarbon 

discoveries have been made over the 

past few years: Egypt’s ‘supergiant’ 

offshore Zohr discovery – current 

estimates put the find at 32Tcf of 

natural gas; offshore Senegal there is 

the SNE field, which has 641 million 

barrels of recoverable oil and undrilled 

prospects, with a promising potential 

of 2.7 billion barrels; and in nearby 

Mauritania and straddling the 

Senegal border is the Greater Tortue 

Complex, which holds an estimated 

25Tcf of gas. 

Across the continent are the 

well-known massive natural gas 

accumulations in Mozambique and 

Tanzania, along with the landlocked 

Albertine Basin in Uganda with its 1.5 

billion barrels of oil. To the north, Kenya 

now has an estimated 750 million 

barrels of crude oil resources, and 

counting, in the South Lokichar Basin. 

The list of notable African oil and gas 

discoveries that are awaiting further 

exploration and development is lengthy. 

A tremendous amount of foreign 

investment capital – hundreds and 

hundreds of billions of dollars – will be 

needed to bring these projects to 

fruition. For example, the 1,443km 

pipeline needed to transport oil from 

Ugandan oil fields to the Tanzanian 

coast will cost at least $3.5 billion alone. 

Then there are the roads, a refinery, 

storage facilities, and countless other 

amenities needed amounting to billions 

more. With the exception of Egypt, 

these regions have little to no oil or gas 

infrastructure in the ‘discovery areas’, 

meaning additional investments, along 

with innovative technological solutions, 

will be required to bring the resources 

to market. 

In addition, ancillary services to 

project developers will be paramount. 

This presents an excellent opportunity 

for investors to get in on the ground 

floor in many cases, and for host 

nations to take advantage of what 

foreign partners can bring to the table, 

especially in helping to develop a local 

industry and talent pool. 

Dianne Sutherland stresses the importance of a 

competitive marketplace to secure vital funding from 

investors for Africa’s energy industries, which would 

bring with it undiscovered economic prosperity 

Developing 

Africa’s 

hydrocarbon 

resources 

32Tcf 

Estimated amount of 

natural gas in Egypt’s 

‘supergiant’ Zohr gas field 

$3.5bn 

Cost of laying 1,443km of 

pipeline to transport oil 

from Uganda to Tanzania 



An oil platform on the Atlantic Ocean in Walvis Bay, Namibia 

iStock /laranik 

Accessing capital 

While these projects could very well 

be lucrative, Africa is not the only 

investment destination in the world. 

Around the globe there are a plethora 

of energy projects for investors to 

consider opening their wallets for. 

As such, in today’s low oil price 

environment, African governments 

need to do what is necessary to 

attract investment capital rather than 

losing out to global competitors who 

maintain an attractive and welcoming 

investment climate. 

It is an investor’s market and the 

fiscal and regulatory regimes must be 

realistic and offer a win-win proposition 

to both the investor and host nation. 

Investors will not only look at the 

resources to be monetised, and the 

economics, but also the ‘above ground’ 

risks such as regional security, the 

political climate, ease of doing business, 

fiscal terms, and so on. In short, the 

more attractive the terms, the better 

the chance an investor might overlook 

any riskier factors when deciding where 

to place precious capital. 

On the right path 

The African Development Bank, in 

cooperation with the African Union and 

other partners, has scaled up its efforts 

and continue to work with African 

governments to design and implement 

strategies for optimal utilisation of oil 

and gas resources to accelerate growth 

and development in the continent. 

In 2007 Ghana’s Jubilee Field was 

discovered and rapidly brought online 

in December 2010. After the initial 

discoveries, the government went about 

the business of creating a long-term 

strategy to develop its resources, create 

a local services industry, and develop 

its human capital. Indicators of Ghana’s 

success include the number of new 

exploration contracts signed and joint 

ventures established with international 

oil and services companies, along with 

a growing skilled labour pool, all 

transpiring in under a decade. 

This is a good time for African 

nations to put in place the mechanisms 

to insulate their oil industries from 

future volatility and secure their 

position as a premier investment 

destination. Investors want to invest; all 

they need is a good reason to do so. • 



Sarah Rundell explores the African 

Mining Vision and how the continent 

can strike gold with a combination of 

investment, structural transformation 

and policy reformation 

The 

African 

mining 

mission 

The rush of global investment into Africa’s 

resource sector over the last decade failed 

to deliver the broad-based development the 

continent craves. The Republic of Côte 

d’Ivoire and Tanzania rank as two of the 

world’s fastest growing economies, 

according to the International Monetary Fund’s latest 

World Economic Outlook. Yet the pace of growth of the 

two countries does not reflect their ranking according to 

the United Nations Development Programme’s (UNDP) 

Human Development Index. Investment in Africa’s 

resource sector has slowed and commodity prices have 

dropped. The International Monetary Fund has projected 

that Africa’s economy will grow by 3% in 2016, well below 

the 6% average growth over the last decade and its 

lowest rate in the last 15 years. Commodity prices have 

always buffeted the continent’s fortunes, but the inability 

of Africa to turn its exceptional mineral wealth into 

long-term wealth creation is critical challenge that 

needs to be addressed. 

A solution could be at hand. The African Mining Vision 

(AMV), formerly adopted by African Heads of State at the 

2009 African Union Summit, is Africa’s first attempt to 

foster a continent-wide mining policy. It sets out an 

ambitious resource-based development and industrial 

strategy that calls for a paradigm shift away from the 

resource rent-centred strategy that has governed African 

TANZANIA Geita, artisanal 

gold mining in Mgusu 



9% 

of Ghana’s gold production 

in 2000 came from artisanal 

miners raising to 

23% 

by 2010 

mining for two decades. Instead, it offers mineral-based 

industrialisation, structural transformation and better 

integration. It strives to engender “transparent, equitable 

and optimal exploitation of Africa’s mineral resources to 

underpin broad-based sustainable growth and 

socio-economic development.” 

A key tenet of the AMV asks African governments to 

measure the extent of their own mineral wealth. The 

current knowledge gap leaves governments struggling to 

make informed decisions on the true value of their 

resources, often selling mining concessions too cheaply. 

It inhibits investment policy and weakens bargaining 

power with international investors. 

Boosting integration 

The AMV seeks to promote Africa’s small-scale miners, 

boosting these entrepreneurs’ integration into the rural 

and national economy. Figures from the Africa Progress 

Report 2013 show that in 2000, artisanal mining 

contributed 9% of Ghana’s gold production. By 2010 that 

figure had risen to 23%, with over one million Ghanaians 

directly dependent on artisanal mining for their 

livelihoods. One World Bank study estimates that there 

are 620,000 artisanal and small-scale miners in Tanzania. 

Estimates put the number of artisanal gold miners in 

Mali between 100,000 and 200,000. These miners produce 

around four tonnes of gold a year – 8% of national output. 

Now the AMV calls on governments to “harness the 

potential of artisanal mining to improve rural 

livelihoods.” Progress in recent years includes Ghana’s 

AngloGold Ashanti developing a programme that aims to 

give artisanal miners legal mining rights on land in 

concession areas. In return, the miners have to register 

and comply with some basic health, safety and 

environmental requirements. 

The AMV urges governments to build human and 

institutional capacity in the resource sector. Securing the 

best deals around tax, navigating stabilisation clauses 

and issues around transfer pricing, or licensing schemes 

that successfully boost competition and realise better 

value, require essential expertise. Governments need to 

go beyond first come, first serve and explore alternatives 

like auctioning to secure more value. 

Joerg Boethling / Alamy 

Contributing to Africa’s goals 

Efforts to improve capacity include the African Union’s 

(AU) adoption of a science, technology and innovation in 

Africa strategy, which aims to boost technology-driven 

economies and contribute to the goals of Africa’s Agenda 

2063. An example of the strategy in action includes 

efforts by the AU and NEPAD to collaborate in building 

executive capacity through the Technology, Innovation 

and Entrepreneurship programme. 

Efforts to boost capacity in Guinea, the world’s top 

supplier of aluminium ore bauxite, include a 2011 Mining 

Code requiring holders of mineral concessions to give 

preference to national enterprises. Mining legislation in 

Ghana, Senegal and Zambia carries similar requirements, 

and Ghana requires gold mining companies to submit 



Joerg Boethling / Alamy Stock Photo 

plans for the recruitment and training of 

Ghanaians. Local employment is encouraged by 

the Mining Charter Scorecard in South Africa, 

and mandated by the national petroleum law in 

Angola. 

Alongside this national legislation, regional 

bodies are building local expertise. The AU and 

the UN have set out a broad framework for 

action. The Economic Community of West 

African States (ECOWAS) treaty calls for 

procurement policies that favour local and 

regional firms. The African Development Bank 

(AfDB) also supports programmes aimed at 

strengthening local content. 

The AMV calls for improvements in 

transparency and accountability within 

government departments so that resource 

rents are maximised and utilised to promote 

broad economic and social development. The 

Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative 

(EITI) has acted as a catalyst for reform in 

many countries, providing governments, civil 

society and foreign investors with a set of 

benchmarks for good practice. Several African 

governments have made strides in improving 

transparency, publishing extractive contracts 

online or complying with transparency 

standards laid out by the EITI. By 2013 African 

countries accounted for 11 of the 18 countries 

that were EITI compliant. 

Progress includes Sierra Leone establishing 

an online database for mining contracts that is 

published for public accessibility. Under its new 

Mining Code, Guinea has published more than 

60 contract documents covering 18 mining 

projects, says the African Progress Report. 

Other countries have not made such progress. 

Mozambique became EITI compliant in October 

2012, but has yet to follow the best practices 

established in Ghana, Liberia and Sierra Leone. 

Linking mining and manufacturing 

The creation of economic linkages that ensure 

the benefits from mineral exploitation spread 

to other areas of the economy is another pillar 

of the AMV. Although Africa is a top producer, 

most minerals are still exported as raw 

materials. The AMV calls for linkages into 

mineral beneficiation and manufacturing, 

consumables, service industries and 

infrastructure like power, transport and 

communications. In 2013 over 90% of South 

Africa’s top 10 exports to China were raw 

materials, while all of South Africa’s top 10 

imports from China were manufactured goods, 

according to South Africa’s Department of 

Trade and Industry. 

things are changing. South 

Africa and Botswana are 

building skilled industries 

from natural resources 

Yet things are changing. South Africa and 

Botswana are building skilled industries from 

natural resources such as diamond polishing 

and manufacturing metallic goods. The South 

African 

government has 

made beneficiation 

policies a central 

part of its New 

Growth Path and 

is drafting new 

legislation to 

encourage 

companies to first 

process minerals before exporting them. When 

the diamond-mining lease of De Beers expired 

in 2005, the government of Botswana made 

renewal conditional on the company agreeing 

to a joint venture. The Diamond Trading 

Company was established with clear 

performance targets 

for the production of rough diamonds, at 


RESPONSIBLE MINING 

AMV also puts environmental 

and socially responsible mining 

at its heart. It calls on 

governments to strengthen the 

frameworks that govern 

environmental and social impact 

assessment, management and 

regulation. It calls on regulatory 

agencies to improve their 

interaction with citizens and 

communities affected by mining. 

This would help minimise 

conflicts and tensions with 

communities due to 

displacement and disruption of 

livelihoods by mining activities. 

Companies should also improve 

their corporate social 

responsibility regimes to 

enhance cooperation between 

government, mining companies 

and communities, says the AMV. 

XXXXXXXXXXX 

Tanzania Geita Gold Mine, open-cast gold 

mine of company AngloGold Ashanti 

least 80% of which had to be cut and 

polished domestically. 

Revenues from Botswana’s mineral exports 

– mainly diamonds – are allocated through a 

rule that limits their use to investment 

spending, with the remainder placed in a saving 

account for future generations – the Pula Fund, 

which is used to stabilise the economy in the 

face of external shocks, enabling governments 

to avoid fiscal adjustments that could reinforce 

recession and lead to cuts in budgets. 

Diversifying the economy 

Adding value in Africa’s other industries shows 

what is possible. Countries export leather 

instead of just hides and textiles in place of 

cotton. Mauritius, once a poor, sugar-dependent 

nation, has a diversified economy in which 

manufacturing and tourism play a growing 

role. A key government strategy was to develop 

export-processing zones – duty-free 

industrial areas that also provide tax incentives 

AFRICAN MINING 

8% 

of Mali’s gold is mined by 

artisanal miners 

90% 

of South Africa’s top 10 

exports to China in 2013 

were raw materials 

80% 

of diamonds mined in 

Botswana had to be cut 

and polished domestically 

to businesses. Development 

of the sector was particularly helped 

by the government increasing spending on 

manpower and infrastructure development. 

The pace of investment has slowed, but 

foreign groups will continue to compete for 

Africa’s natural resources. Indian 

multinationals like Vedanta and Tata have 

pushed into Africa. Brazilian companies like 

Vale are active players in countries from 

Guinea to Mozambique and Zambia. 

EU, US and Japanese concerns around 

security of supply of high technology materials 

promises continued competition. The AMV 

is a rallying point for the world to join Africa in 

its development and turn its mineral wealth 

from a curse to a blessing. The current slump 

in world commodity prices is forcing Africa 

to rethink its traditional dependence on 

raw material exports and lay the foundations 

for transitioning from extractive to 

learning economies. • 


Axa perspective 

Corporate and specialty 

insurance, supporting business 

growth across Africa 

For those of us who know the continent 

well, Africa is vast and diverse, offering 

potential investors a wide range of 

opportunities, but it also presents 

significant risks which need to be 

managed and mitigated. 

Corporate and specialty lines of insurance 

is a segment of the insurance industry 

specifically designed for unusual and 

difficult to assess risks that can be 

challenging to place in traditional markets. 

Specialty insurance solves this 

predicament by providing tailor-made 

solutions for insurance coverage, as 

opposed to an all-in coverage which may 

not be necessary for the client. For 

example, for property risks, the standard 

traditional cover is all risk cover, however 

a specialty insurance policy could provide 

separate coverage for catastrophe only, 

stop loss, nominated perils and deductible 

buy back, which could be better suited for 

the client’s needs. AXA views Africa as 

having excellent growth potential, and 

is thus providing this kind of tailored 

specialist risk cover for risks through 

AXA Africa Specialty Risks. 

Significant expansion 

Growth in Africa has traditionally been 

facilitated by under-utilised infrastructure 

capacity, however, a few years ago this was 

fully utilised and needed both upgrading 

and significant expansion. Foreign 

investors, governments and development 

funds have all been focused on providing 

the necessary funding for infrastructure 

and industrial development. Governments 

across Africa have been willing to sign up 

to long term agreements to ensure that 

investors can make an adequate return 

on their investment. 

The crucial point here is that the 

majority of investment is coming from 

outside Africa, African countries have 

historically been hampered by poor 

credit ratings, reflecting their developing 

status and there is potential for political 

and financial uncertainty. Moreover, the 

local insurance industries have largely 

focused on personal lines and SME 

insurance, with South Africa being the 

most notable exception. 

In the light of this, the underwriting 

skill set in African countries does not yet 

exist to understand and price large and/or 

complex risks and in general, the insurers 

do not have a balance sheet that could 

provide the claims payment capability in 

response to insurance claims on this scale. 

Furthermore, most foreign investors are 

looking for insurance coverage from scale 

providers with a minimum of an 

international ‘A’ grade rating. 

So when we talk about risk mitigation 

across Africa, it is clear there is a major

Axa perspective 

There has been a large amount of investment in infrastructure 

Mikir Shah, CEO of AXA Africa Specialty Risks 

role for specialty risk insurance in relation 

to construction and engineering projects. 

To provide some examples, there can be a 

surety to cover against contractors 

defaulting during the construction phase; 

Construction All Risks insurance to cover 

the risks associated with a large project; 

delayed start up cover to make up for some 

of the financial loss when a project is 

delayed by unforeseen events; and 

operational covers to fund getting a 

business back to operational mode after a 

claim event and even to offset the 

profitability impact. 

Energy is another major challenge for 

Africa, with many governments struggling 

to meet demand, and ambitious renewable 

energy targets being introduced in 

a number of countries, for example 

with Namibia looking at ‘70% renewables 

by 2030’. Innovative insurance products 

can be offered to the energy industry, 

beyond providing physical damage and 

business interruption coverage for 

operating risks, such as construction 

coverage for renewable energy projects 

including wind farms (offshore and 

onshore), solar photovoltaic plants, bio 

fuel plants, geothermal plants and hydro 

generation projects. 

Political risk 

It is extremely important to emphasise the 

impact of political risk on businesses in 

Africa, here too corporate and speciality 

risk insurance can have an important role 

to play. Political risk insurance can cover 

cases where it is not possible to repatriate 

loan payments or dividends, or where a 

government contract is not honoured. 

Asset risks insurance can protect fixed 

assets, such as factories, mines and 

other industrial investments, against 

expropriation and licence cancellation, 

or mobile assets against confiscation 

and wilful destruction. There is even 

political violence and terrorism insurance 

providing global war, terrorism and political 

violence cover, war and strikes cover for 

transit risk, and third party terrorism 

liability amongst others. 

Since we started AXA Africa Specialty 

Risks in 2016, we have been surprised by 

the high level of demand for commercial 

and speciality risk cover, outstripping our 

initial forecast and expectations. It has 

been particularly interesting to note that 

we are being asked to provide insurance 

covers for the full range of corporate and 

specialty risks with energy and political risk 

cover high on client agendas’. 

Whilst the growth potential of Africa 

will not be realised overnight, the provision 

of corporate and specialty risks insurance 

will be a crucial factor in providing 

investors with the comfort and coverage 

they need to invest in African countries 

and businesses and get new projects 

off the ground. 

To contact us please visit 

www.AXA-ASR.com to find 

your local representative.


Africa’s economy is still struggling to 

regain the 3% share of World GDP that it 

enjoyed in the 1970s, and surpassing it 

still seems a long way away. The continent 

is blessed with an abundance of natural 

resources but that richness can be a 

two-edged sword. If wealth ‘sufficient unto the day’ can 

be generated by simply digging resources out of the 

ground and selling them to overseas buyers, the drive to 

industrialise can lose some of its urgency. Africa’s 

manufactured output roughly doubled over the 10 years 

to 2014 and its goods are being exported to more 

countries than ever before. In 2013, Africa’s GDP growth 

of 5.6% was the highest of all the world’s continents. 

Unfortunately, forecasts made at the time by former Lead 

Economist in the Africa Region of the World Bank, Hinh 

Dinh, of an average growth rate of 6% a year over the 

decade 2013-23 seem unlikely to be fulfilled. The dangers 

of relying on high commodity prices has been exposed 

over the past two years, with the collapse of the oil price 

and falls across the board in other materials, from metals 

and minerals to rare soils. The International Monetary 

Fund estimates that growth in 2016 will be around 4%. 

The silver lining 

The economic storms of the past few years can work in 

Africa’s favour. Currency devaluation makes a country 

more attractive to outside investors, as it reduces cost 

base and overheads such as wages, when viewed from 

outside. Structural features such as special trade 

relationships with the European Union and the United 

States open up valuable and attractive markets. But does 

Africa have the resources in place to attract the 

necessary investment and to grow its own, indigenous 

industries, alongside foreign-owned enterprises? The 

answer is very much in the positive but the extent of the 

challenges should not be underestimated. 

Technology reduces demand for low-skilled labour, so 

it is essential to invest in higher skills. The continent’s 

rising share of global R&D had reached 20% by 2010 

according to Hollanders & Soete, but weak infrastructure 

– lack of electricity, poor roads and crowded ports – push 

up the cost of transporting raw materials and finished 

goods by as much as 20%. 

Ethiopia rises 

One of the recent success stories has been in Ethiopia, 

which has seen its manufacturing sector expand by an 

average of 10% a year since 2006. It has attracted 

horticultural companies from Holland; Chinese textile 

and leather businesses; and garment firms from Turkey. 

It is now targeting German and Swiss pharmaceutical 

enterprises, as well as investment from further afield. 

Earlier in 2016, UK-based private equity firm 54 Capital 

announced a $42 million investment into Ethiopia’s Addis 

Pharmaceutical Factory, a domestic producer of more 

than 70 types of medicines. Medtech, an Ethiopian 

company, began manufacturing in 2013 in a $7.8 million 

joint venture with Julphar, a pharmaceutical company 

from UAE. Ethiopia imported around 85% of its 

pharmaceutical needs as recently as 2015, according to 

A conveyor belt on the bottling line at 

the Meta Abo brewery in Sebeta, Ethiopia 

Facing the 

headwind 

Growth has slowed in 2016, as have capital 

flows. The next few years will be challenging 

for the continent’s broad economy, and external 

influences will have an effect, but all is not 

negative, says Ruari McCallion 



Sales of locally assembled 

cars increased by 57% in 

2014, bringing the total to 

approximately 145,000 units 

Medtech founder and CEO, Dr Mohammed Nuri. 

The local demand for confectionery has attracted an 

investment from British company Silk Invest into NAS 

Foods. International beverage giants such as Diageo and 

Heineken, which acquired former state-owned brewers in 

Ethiopia, have stimulated Juniper Glass Industries and 

Atlas Development & Support Services to establish 

bottle-manufacturing plants in the country. Samsung and 

Tecno have built manufacturing facilities and Ethiopia 

has even attracted automotive manufacturers. Chinese 

companies Lifan Motors and Geely Automobile Holdings 

avoid 35% import duties by assembling locally, although 

the government’s investment in a 6,000 MW hydroelectric 

power plant, and a new railway between Addis 

Ababa and the port of Djibouti may have helped as well. 

Auto: the driving force 

Countries in the north of Africa around the 

Mediterranean have seen substantial levels of inward 

investment from European car companies. In October 

2014, Renault opened a new assembly plant in Oued Tlelat, 

in the Oran region of Algeria. It produces the Renault 

Symbol and Dacia Sandero Stepway and has a current 

Simon Dawson/Bloomberg via Getty Images 

capacity of 25,000 vehicles a year. Egypt’s auto industry is 

recovering from its doldrums; its 15 car assembly 

factories and 75 support and supply chain industry 

facilities employ 75,000 workers and have the capacity to 

produce 300,000 cars and buses per year. Sales of locally 

assembled cars increased by 57% in 2014, bringing the 

total to approximately 145,000 units in 2014, according to 

the Automotive Marketing Information Council (AMIC). 

Indigenous auto manufacturers have enjoyed varying 

fortunes. Nigeria’s Innoson Vehicle Manufacturing Co 

(IVM), which makes two sedan models and a range of 

buses and coaches, using primarily locally-sourced 

components, encountered a Foreign Exchange problem 

that affected availability of some foreign-manufactured 

parts. This resulted in a slowdown of production over the 

latter part of the summer months and into the autumn. 

Hyundai and Nissan also assemble vehicles in Nigeria. 

Uganda’s Kiira Motors Corporation, currently 

wholly-owned by the government of Uganda, in early 

2016 unveiled the Kayoola Solar Bus, a completely 

electric-powered small bus, with solar cell range 

extension for en route recharging. The company hopes 

to begin production of cars and buses in 2018. 

The best example of the contribution that a developed 

auto industry can make to the economy is in South Africa. 

BMW, Ford, Volkswagen, Daimler-Benz and Toyota all 

have plants in the country, in Eastern Cape and Gauteng 

provinces. Tier One component manufacturers including 

Arvin Exhaust, Corning and Senior Flexonics also have 

production bases, which extends manufacturing 

infrastructure into the wider economy and helps to 

develop the supply and support chain. 

The current economic climate presents an ideal 

opportunity for Africa to attract investment to create 

productive jobs because of rising labour costs in China 

and other Asian countries. Wages are still relatively low 

in Africa. The biggest challenges to developing the 

manufacturing sector are the level of skills and the 

condition of the infrastructure, especially transport 

routes. These areas are inevitably the responsibility of 

governments to address and remedy. Examples such as 

those from Ethiopia (see box-out) demonstrate the 

advances that can be made from even a low base. • 



The concept of the blue 

economy was given 

importance by Gunter Pauli in 

2004 when he initiated ‘Zero 

Emissions Research and 

Initiatives (ZERI) in Action’. In 

his 2010 book, entitled The Blue Economy: 10 

years, 100 innovations, 100 million jobs, we are 

taught that a blue economy business model 

will endeavour to swing society from 

shortage to wealth “with what is locally 

available” by dealing with environmental and 

other connected issues in innovative ways. 

The blue economy goes ahead of the 

green economy or the ocean economy. It 

comprises all economic activities carried 

out in rivers, lakes, banks, shores, streams, 

underground waters, fresh waters, seabed, 

seas and oceans. 

Small Islands Developing States (SIDS) 

like Mauritius and Seychelles have 

understood its importance and are 

generating the conditions that respond to 

the fundamental needs of everyone in the 

ecosystem, including the fauna and the flora 

in the Indian Ocean. 

In other regions of Africa, coastal 

corrosion is a big issue that governments 

need to address urgently. In Western Africa, 

this is having some distressing consequences 

with erosion rates of 23–30 metres being 

recorded annually in some regions. 

Strengthening maritime 

safety and security 

A good example is Togo, on the Gulf of 

Guinea. The country has firmly embraced 

the strategic framework of the blue economy 

and has recently launched and implemented 

a programme called the National Strategy 

for the Sea and the Coastal Region. The 

programme aims to strengthen maritime 

safety and security, promote employment 

opportunities and public-private 

partnerships, modernise maritime tourism, 

develop the blue economy, and sustainably 

manage the marine environment. 

Countries on the north west shores 

of Africa, greatly dependent on fishing, 

tourism and commerce, have set up ways 

to enhance reliance on marine products to 

feed their population. 

Thirty-eight African countries have a 

façade on the sea, which represents one third 

of the African population, hence the interest 

in developing marine economies while 

preserving ecosystems. 

However, the financing should be 

determined, as the huge potential of the blue 

economy in Africa has not been quantified 

yet. World Bank’s Ocean Economy expert 

Thirty-eight of Africa’s 54 countries have a coastal boundary 

The blue economy is gaining momentum in Africa, and 

many African countries are betting on this economy 

for blue growth, writes Yasine Mohabuth. But does 

Africa have the means to fulfil its ambitions? 

Africa Inc. 

for the blue 

economy 



$670m 

The amount World Bank 

Group has pledged to the 

African blue economy 

90% 

of trade between African 

states is carried out by sea 

Yuvan Beejadhur explained that “fisheries, 

aquaculture, tourism, [and] renewable 

energies are opportunities arising from the 

added value of the blue economy, which has 

enormous potential in Africa. Currently, it is 

not known how much this sector represents 

for the continent. We have noticed that states 

have difficulties to quantify the blue economy. 

Worldwide, blue economy is valued at $24 

trillion. This is an enormous figure, but for 

Africa it is necessary to study further.” 

The World Bank Group has earmarked 

more than $670 million for the African blue 

economy out of the $19 billion that it plans to 

raise for the continent. The largely ignored or 

underutilised area of the blue economy can 

be a robust development tool for Africa. It 

is at the heart of globalisation as 90% of 

trade between states is carried out by sea 

and 95% of global communications are from 

submarine networks. 

In Africa, 70 million people are in danger 

of starvation. The United Nations Food and 

Agriculture Organization (FAO) believes that 

Africa does not use the oceans sufficiently as 

a productive economic activity. FAO Director 

Dr José Graziano da Silva sounds the alarm: 

“In order to transform the oceans we must 

be looking for good proteins; i.e. fish and all 

aquaculture products that are very popular 

in the SIDS. This is an important source of 

nutrition. Nowadays, 90% of what we consume 

comes from the land. We must share this 

responsibility with the oceans,” says da Silva. 

The impact of climate change 

Climate change is inextricably linked 

to the development of the blue economy. 

The oceans, coasts and seas of the African 

continent are inseparable from its 

development and prosperity. With climate 

change, we do not yet know what the impact 

will be on the oceans with sudden changes 

in the currents. 

Pauli emphasised that actions should 

be undertaken at grassroots level with 

investments in the youth: “Over the years 

we have found that the most difficult [thing] 

is to inspire the would-be entrepreneurs to 

stand up and take initiative. That is why 

the blue economy combines the design of 

clusters of projects (never one at the time) 

with learning initiatives that start at the 

level of kindergarten”. 

The blue economy’s growth embraces 

massive assurance for Africa, gifted with 

gigantic unexploited natural resources. 

The continent needs to implement its blue 

economy framework that will be mutually 

beneficial for not only the states but also 

for all their stakeholders, as we are still 

unaware of climate change’s impact on 

the blue economy and these aspects 

have to be looked into both scientifically 

and financially. • 

Worldwide, 

blue economy is 

valued at 

$24 trillion 

YUVAN BEEJADHUR, 

WORLD BANK 

istock photo 


Foreword 

Supporting an African 

space agenda and 

ensures that Africa 

is a responsible user 

of outer space 

The Commission places 

emphasis on the 

development of 

Africa’s human 

resource, through 

education at all levels, 

development and application of 

science, technology, and innovation. 

We also pay special attention on 

youth populations, (their capacity 

building and empowerment) and 

on education for girls and women. 

To promote dialogue at the 

continental level, and to effectively 

work with Member States, the 

African Union through its Assembly 

created a Specialised Technical 

Committees (STCs), among them an 

STC in charge of Education, Science 

and Technology which allows the 

Ministers in charge of these sectors 

to periodically deliberate and take 

joint decisions on related matters. 

The status of education, science and 

technology is improving in Africa. We 

just adopted a people centred 

long-term Agenda 2063, which 

strives to enable Africa to remain 

focused and committed to the ideals 

envisaged in the context of a rapidly 

changing world. Action is required in 

many domains to realise this Agenda 

and deliver on the rising aspirations 

of African citizens and global 

expectations. To do so, we ensured 

that this agenda is underpinned by 

education, science and technology as 

enablers and tools of achieving the 

continental development goals. The 

Commission developed three 

continental strategies for technical 

and vocational education and 

training; CESA 2016-2015 for 

education; and STISA-2024 for 

science, technology and innovation. 

These strategies will contribute to 

achieving the global Sustainable 

Development Goals (SDGs) and 

creation of long-term economic 

benefits for the continent. 

Foster transformation 

The African Union 

Commission is rapidly 

deploying science, 

technology and innovation 

across various socioeconomic 

sectors with 

a view to foster social 

transformation and 

economic competitiveness 

927 

students 

attending the 

Pan-African 

University at the 

start of 2016 

STISA-2024. In the first 10 years of its 

implementation the strategy will 

focus on addressing six distinct 

socio-economic priorities aimed at 

eradicating hunger and ensuring food 

and nutrition security; prevention 

and control of diseases; protection of 

our space; communication, 

promoting living together and 

building the society and creation of 

prosperity. Through its mutually 

reinforcing pillars the strategy urges 

Member States and the Regional 

Economic Communities to build and 

upgrade research infrastructures, 

enhance professional and technical 

competencies, promote innovation 

and entrepreneurship development 

and continue creating an enabling 

policy environment for science, 

technology and innovation. 

Africa in space 

The continent is gradually becoming 

active in space activities. The Heads 

of State and Government adopted the 

African Space Policy and Strategy 

(ASPS) in January 2016 as the first 

set of instruments to guide 

sustainable utilisation of space 

services and applications by African 

States. The ASPS identifies earth 

observation; satellite communication; 

navigation and positioning; and 

astronomy and space sciences as the 

main themes for formalisation of a 

well-coordinated and integrated 

African Space Programme that 

is both responsive to the social, 

economic, political and 

environmental needs of the continent 

and is globally competitive. 

Furthermore, this will lead to the 

establishment of a regulatory 

framework that supports an African 

space agenda and ensures that Africa 

is a responsible user of outer space. 

The appropriate institutional form 

to govern space activities has since 

been defined and proposed 

to be an African Space 

Agency with main 

mandates of promoting; 

coordinating space 

activities; and 

implementing space 

programmes. 

The Continental 

Education Strategy for 

Africa (CESA 16-25) was 

developed and adopted by 


Foreword 

H.E. Dr. Martial 

De-Paul Ikounga 

Commissioner for Human Resources, Science and Technology 


the January 2016 Summit. CESA is 

informed by Agenda 2063, as well as 

by the outcome of an evaluation of 

the Second Decade of Education for 

Africa (2006-2015), evaluation of the 

UNESCO brokered Education for All, 

and pan African multi-stakeholder 

discussions. CESA 16-25 provides a 

common basis for national, regional 

and continental programme design 

and implementation, and an overall 

framework for mobilisation of all 

key stakeholders. It is a strategy 

for reorienting Africa’s education 

and training systems to meet the 

knowledge, competencies, skills, 

innovation and creativity required to 

nurture African core values and 

promote sustainable development at 

the national, regional and continental 

levels, towards the Africa we want. 

Twelve strategic objectives are 

proposed as high level results to 

be achieved in implementing CESA 

16-25. The document also includes 

suggested Action Areas to form the 

basis for operational plans, cutting 

across all levels and types of 

education and education provision. 

The issue of teachers and teaching 

remains core to education 

development. Also highlighted are 

science and technology; a demand 

for a paradigm shift in technical and 

vocational education and training; 

gender; value inculcation in 

education, such as peace and 

democracy; and ensuring access and 

inclusion for the remotely situated, 

the slower learners, the poor and the 

hungry. An important area that must 

be strengthened is Education 

Management Information Systems. 

Pan-African University 

One of the flagship projects within 

our education is the Pan-African 

University composed of five regional 

hubs that focus on basic sciences, 

technology and innovation; life and 

earth sciences; water, energy and 

climate change; space sciences and 

technology; and humanities, social 

sciences and good governance. PAU 

aims at building high-level skills 

within the continent, and allowing 

African graduates to become 

effective leaders in many fields that 

are vital to Africa’s future. It is a new 

generation university constituted 

from educational and research 

structures already in operation 

underlay with the idea of establishing 

world-class research institutes to 

provide quality education and 

research, attract leadership and 

talent, and promote international 

cooperation. PAU offers postgraduate 

training programs both at Masters’ 

and PhD levels. At present a total of 

37 degree programs (22 MA/MSc. and 

15 PhD) are offered at the Pan 

African University Institutes. The 

PAU student population at the 

beginning of the 2016/2017 academic 

year stands at 927 (275 female and 

652 male). This further breaks down 

to 702 students in the MA/MSc. 

degree programs and 225 in the PhD 

degree programs. So far, a total of 216 

Africans (57 female and 159 male) 

graduated with MA/MSc. degrees in 

various fields of specialisation. 

In 2017 Africa is focusing on 

“Investing in Young People”: with 

35% of its population aged between 

15 and 35, Africa has been presented 

with an enticing opportunity to 

harness and reap from its 

demographic dividend. Over the past 

10 years, the conversations on the 

potential benefits of Africa’s ‘youth 

bulge’ have intensified; leading to a 

decision by African Heads of State 

and Government to declare the 2017 

as the year for, ‘Harnessing the 

Demographic Dividend through 

Investments in Youth’. This 

declaration was followed by the 

adoption of an African Union 

Roadmap for the 2017, which 

identifies four pillars that require 

strategic investment from key actors 

on the continent and international 

partners. Consistent and extensive 

investment in the four 

interconnected pillars: employment 

and entrepreneurship; education and 

skills development; health and 

well-being and rights; and 

governance and youth 

empowerment. These have the 

potential to drive change and set 

African countries on the trajectory 

towards harnessing the demographic 

dividend and ultimately achieving the 

aspirations set out in Agenda 2063. 


ICT & TELECOMMUNICATION 

ICT & Telecommunications 

Data is the secret to growth, writes Tapiwa M Chiwewe. The 

Internet of Things and investment in digital infrastructure is 

vital if Africa is to harness that growth 

Bringing Cognitive 

IoT to Africa 

We live in a 

changing world. 

Demographic 

shifts, data 

proliferation, 


challenges, resource scarcity and 

increased threats are causing stresses to 

our societal planning and management 

abilities, as well as our well-being and 

personal growth. It is projected that in 

2050 two-thirds of the world’s population 

will live in urban areas, heralding the rise 

of the urban planet. GDP figures for 

growth in mature economies in 2015 was 

2.2% compared to 4.9% in emerging 

economies, according to Goldman Sachs 

global investment research. Africa is set 



to be the second fastest growing region 

and home to the youngest population in 

the world by 2025, according to Frost & 

Sullivan. These changes can be 

challenging given the stresses they 

cause, but the information age we find 

ourselves in presents an opportunity for 

a generation of leaders – naturally 

comfortable with technology – to use 

new innovation to solve seemingly 

intractable problems. 

The digital age and cognitive IoT 

The 1990s were about connecting 

information, the 2000s were about 

connecting people, and the 2010s are 

about connecting devices in what is 

known as the Internet of Things (IoT). 

In the world we live in, virtually 

everything is becoming connected, 

be it vehicles, consumer electronics, 

household appliances, manufacturing 

lines, or other ‘things’ from our physical 

world. As a result, the way we 

experience the world changes as the 

things around us update themselves and 

adapt to our needs and preferences. 

A definition of the IoT from the Web 

of Things community is “a system of 

physical objects that can be discovered, 

monitored, controlled or interacted with 

by electronic devices which 

communicate over various networking 

interfaces, and eventually can be 

connected to the wider Internet”. We 

are at the peak of the IoT technology 

hype curve and at the early stage of 

adoption. By the turn of the decade, 

Africa is likely to account for one billion 

connected devices, with ITU estimating 

that there will be 25 billion connected 

devices by 2020. This data deluge from 

billions of various devices can provide 

new insights into the physical world. 

One of the challenges of all of this 

data is that it is unstructured or dark to 

computers, meaning they can’t analyse 

or make sense of it. In fact, 80% of the 

data is currently dark and it will grow to 

93% by 2020. What if the cure for cancer 

is in this dark data? Or the forecast of a 

tsunami? That’s where we introduce 

cognitive computing into the IoT, which 

can use machine learning and advanced 

technologies such as IBM Watson, to 

shine a light on this dark data. 

Economic relevance of IoT 

IoT offers a potential economic impact 

of between $4 trillion and $11 trillion a 

year in 2025, according to McKinsey 

Global Institute. This will be equivalent 

to 11% of the total world economy. 

Within the next 10 years about $500 

billion in value is expected to be 

realised in Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya 

and other sub-Saharan African 

countries. ABB estimates that IoT 

hardware and connectivity revenues 

are growing 10%–20% annually. Apps, 

analytics and services revenue is 

growing 40%–50% annually. There are 

nine key settings where most of this 

value may occur, which are: factories; 

cities; human; retail; outside; work 

sites; vehicles; homes; and offices. 

Developing countries share 11%–46% 

of the economic impact in these key 

settings, with the greatest share 

being in the work sites, outside and 

factories settings. 



Holistic View of IoT 

Digitisation of the physical world and IP connected 

devices is a means to an end. The goal is to deliver 

deep insights, learn, predict and improve outcomes, 

and thereby improve people’s lives. Using data for 

optimisation and prediction through cognitive 

analytics and cloud computing provides the most 

value. Organisations must also collaborate in new 

ways within IoT ecosystems that allow data to flow 

between them to realise the full potential of IoT. 

For example, I am leading a project in 

Johannesburg, South Africa that uses the IoT to 

combat industrial pollution. By working closely with 

experts from South Africa’s Council for Scientific 

and Industrial Research we are analysing historical 

and real-time data from environmental monitoring 

stations and using machine learning and cognitive 

models to provide insight into air pollution and 

monitor the effectiveness of intervention strategies. 

Challenges to Adopting IoT in Africa 

A shift in mindset is required to drive digital 

transformation and there is a lack of consolidated 

standards. There are concerns around security and 

privacy of IoT data. IT budgets and priorities may 

not be favourable and there may be a dependence 

on certain stakeholders. Also, there are cases of 

uncertain regulatory impacts. Financial support is 

lacking in some cases, and there are instances of 

inadequate infrastructure and insufficient 

technological and human capabilities. In Africa, 

simpler, more cost-effective solutions may prove 

more effective. The African Union (AU) is currently 

working on the first of a 10-year phasing strategy to 

encourage innovation in science and technology 

across the continent. 

IoT Enablers and Opportunity in Africa 

In developing countries more people have access to 

basic telecommunication than have access to 

fundamental services such as electricity, running 

water and sewerage facilities. According to Frost & 

Sullivan, there were 367 million mobile subscribers 

in Africa in mid-2015 and the number of connections 

is expected to be 500 million by 2020, with mobile 

broadband connections rising from 20% to 60% of 

the connection base by then. Within the next 

decade there will be an average of three connected 

devices for each African consumer. Mobile health 

may save one million lives in sub-Saharan Africa in 

the next five years. Mobile banking transactions 

will account for 75% of banking transactions in 

Africa by 2020. Mobile learning in Africa has the 

highest growth rate in the world. 

IoT Progress in Africa 

Thirty-three per cent of enterprises in South Africa 

are planning significant investments in IoT over the 

next three years. The manufacturing industry is 

500m 

The estimated 

number of mobile 

connections in 

Africa by 2020 

leading this charge, followed closely by the 

transport, government, retail, and utilities sectors. 

South Africa traditionally has more developed ICT 

infrastructure than other African countries, but 

there are many other African countries that have 

recognised the opportunites IoT presents. An 

example of this is Rwanda, where they realised that 

to enable a smart city, they require a common 

platform that they can plug their transport, health 

and education systems into to exchange data and 

enable end-to-end solutions. In Rwanda’s Rulindo 

District there is an ongoing smart farming project 

where sensors monitor soil fertility, water, 

temperature and other useful information to 

minimise risk and maximise agricultural yields. An 

estimated investment of $250 million has been 

made to lie over 4,500 kilometres of high-speed 

fibre optic cable across the country. 

Etisalat Group announced the launch of the 

region’s first IoT application development and 

device management platform. ZTE Corporation 

launched an IoT platform with MTN Group in Africa 

together with a global M2M SIM card offering a 

blanket rate across MTN’s Africa network. Several 

insurance companies have been evaluating how IoT 

may be used for usage-based insurance, risk 

prevention and other new products. Fire sensors 



AU SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY 

AND INNOVATION STRATEGY 

FOR AFRICA 2024 

Within the next decade there 

will be an average of three 

connected devices for each 

African consumer 

have been used for early warning fire detection and 

response in informal settlements. RFID tags have 

been used on cattle for personalised livestock care. 

Cameras and smartphones have been used for 

remote disease diagnosis. Cold chain delivery of 

vaccines has been monitored 

using sensors to avoid 

spoilage. Sensors have been 

used for precision and smart 

agriculture in many cases. 

IBM Research – Africa has 

used IoT for monitoring road 

surface quality, traffic 

conditions and even the 

spread of tuberculosis. 

With the right investment, 

IoT could revolutionise 

healthcare, transport and 

education across Africa, as 

well as having countless 

other industry-specific 

applications that would 

benefit millions. Network readiness is a key 

component in modern economic, social, political 

and technological infrastructure, and accolade 

stakeholders across Africa should be striving to 

allow industry to flourish. 

The AU is working on 

a 10-year strategy to 

encourage innovation in 

science and technology 

The AU Science, Technology and 

Innovation Strategy for Africa 

(STISA-2024) places science, 

technology and innovation at the 

epicentre of Africa’s socio-economic 

development and growth. 

The STISA-2024 has been 

developed during an important 

period when the African Union was 

formulating a broader and 

long-term AU Agenda 2063. The 

STISA-2024 is the first of the 

ten-year phasing strategies to 

respond to the demand for science, 

technology and innovation. 

The strategy further defines four 

mutually reinforcing pillars which 

are prerequisites for its success: 

building and/or upgrading research 

infrastructures; enhancing 

professional and technical 

competencies; promoting 

entrepreneurship and innovation; 

and providing an enabling 

environment for STI development in 

the African continent. Continental, 

regional and national programmes 

will be designed, implemented and 

synchronised to ensure that their 

strategic orientations and pillars 

are mutually reinforcing, and 

achieve the envisaged 

developmental impact as effectively 

as possible. 

The AUC and NEPAD Agency 

shall mobilise and coordinate 

resources for technical support in 

developing and implementing 

national and regional plans and 

priority programmes. 


ICT & TELECOMMUNICATIONS 

Innovation 

in Africa 

Carlo Ratti shows that, while the wired phase of the 

technology revolution was slow to catch on in Africa, 

wireless technology has the potential to transform 

every aspect of life on the continent 

Today’s cities are changing 

quickly. In the midst of rapid 

urbanisation the concept of 

smart cities – or ‘senseable 

cities’, as we prefer to call them 

– is emerging. The internet is 

entering the spaces we live in and is becoming 

the ‘Internet of Things’. As a result, many 

aspects of urban life are being rapidly 

transformed – from energy to waste 

management; mobility to water distribution; 

and city planning to citizen engagement. 

In recent years, Africa has witnessed 

several surprising examples of technological 

leapfrogging – a phenomenon that allows those 

who were behind to step ahead of those who 

were previously at the fore by skipping 

traditional phases of development. Mobile 

phone networks are a classic example. Most 

African countries have, by and large, skipped 

the wired era and embraced the wireless one. 

As a result, mobile phones are often used in 

new, ingenious ways. Africa is currently home 

to the second biggest mobile market in the 

world, with penetration rising from 1% in 2000 

to 54% in 2012 and surpassing the number of 

mobile users in the USA, India or Europe. As a 

result, applications on mobile networks – such 

as mobile banking or real time crop monitoring 

– have quickly become more advanced than 

those in many advanced countries. Also, in 

countries where top-down utilities such as 

electricity, water and waste removal need to be 

further developed, disaggregate and localised 

solutions are emerging. 

1% 

Penitration of mobile 

technology across 

Africa at the start of the 

century in 2000 

54% 

Penitration of mobile 

technology across 

Africa 12 years later 

in 2012 

Technological leapfrogging, together with 

bottom-up action, could usher in a new era of 

urbanisation across Africa. Many of the apps 

and innovations mentioned might vanish in a 

few years. As is common in most innovation 

ecosystems, however, their creative approach in 

addressing societal challenges in Africa can be 

seen as promising signs of urban innovation. 

Mobility and traffic congestion 

The explosive demographic situation in many 

African cities has led to serious mobility issues. 

Take Nairobi; its roads were developed for a 

settlement of 350,000 people, and they are now 

serving over 3 million inhabitants. As a result, it 

has become one of the world’s most congested 

cities. Twende Twende is a mobile phone 

service that was developed in IBM’s research 

centre in the Kenyan capital. Swahili for ‘let’s 

go’, Twende Twende takes images captured by 

existing low-cost cameras and applies 

network-flow algorithms to estimate traffic 

flow. The solution does not require expensive 



lakes and unnavigable rivers without the need 

for large-scale physical infrastructure, 

delivering medical and urgent supplies to 

remote areas on a massive scale with an 

immediate life-saving impact in Africa. While 

the scalability of this idea is still to be verified, 

it is promising. 

Security at home 

Hei-Julor is a system for private security in 

Ghana. An external intrusion into one’s home 

can be a scary and traumatic event. Inspired by 

the efficiency with which mobile phone 

messaging technologies were employed during 

the Arab Spring and the London riots, Hei-Julor 

is a mobile phone-based security system, to 

help address this dire situation. 

Africa cannot but benefit 

from the reinforcement 

of its start-up Ecosystems 

road construction. It uses cameras already 

present around the city. 

Ute Grabowsky/Photothek via Getty Images 

Innovation anywhere 

In the ‘innovation everywhere’ world 

we live in, Africa cannot but benefit from the 

reinforcement of its start-up ecosystems. One 

interesting project is iHub, an open community 

space – part vector for investors and venture 

capitalists, part incubator – providing a space 

where young entrepreneurs can receive 

mentorship, internet connectivity and the 

possibility of funding through connections with 

the international venture capital community. 

Infrastructural shortage 

In several parts of Africa, you 

can see an increasing gap 

between population growth 

and infrastructure. The 

Droneport Project could 

transcend geographical 

barriers such as mountains, 

Sharing economy 

Uganda has a vibrant technology start-up scene. 

Yoza, a locally developed android app, helps 

users find laundry services, using technology 

like location detection and social ratings to 

match service providers with clients. Few of the 

‘laundry women’ have smartphones to access 

the app, but Yoza calls them up on their regular 

phones to sign them up and books them for 

jobs, helping both clients and washerwomen. 

Ethical energy 

One of the most crucial pieces of infrastructure 

for development is electricity. Bringing light 

into the night gives people extra time for 

reading or studying, or fulfilling any personal 

project beyond daylight hours. This is the 

motivation behind several projects. Little Sun 

solar-powered lamp by Olafur Eliasson is able 

– during its initial three-year battery life – to 

provide 10 times more light than a paraffin lamp 

and at a fraction of the cost. The iShack Project 

is a South African social enterprise that 

provides a pay-for-use solar electricity service 

to people living in slums. It provides the service 

to over 1,500 clients who pay a monthly fee to 

ensure long term sustainability. 

Technologies for farmers 

Small-scale dairy farmers living in remote areas 

do not have access to information about their 

cows’ health and milk costs. Developed by a 

Kenyan farmer, iCow is an app that works on 

the type of basic mobile phones farmers own, 

empowering them to improve their own lives by 

accessing critical information. Each animal is 

registered with the service, which then sends 

text message reminders to the farmer about 

milking schedules, immunisation dates, and tips 

about nutrition and breeding. The application 

won the Apps4Africa competition, an initiative 

that encourages young developers in designing 

apps that could address local problems. • 

Source 


Africa’s urban population 

472 million today 

659 million by 2025 

1 billion by 2040 

“Galloping urbanisation in Africa has prompted the prioritisation of SMART CITY 

TECHNOLOGY to revolutionise local government service delivery as a key driver 

for change in local economic development.” 

Jean-Pierre Elong-Mbassi 

Secretary General UCLG-Africa 

The impact of urbanisation makes Smart City solutions of particular importance 

in addressing the many constraints that the projected 6.3 billion urban inhabitants 

will face by 2050 (UN: World Urbanisation Prospect 2014). Africa has an even 

bigger challenge as it is urbanising at a much faster rate than the rest of the world 

and faces major infrastructural challenges so it is critical for City Mayors and other 

local representatives to develop a road map to a Smart City. 

A mistake often made when thinking about Smart Cities 

is its association with cities in developed economies. 

The Smart City is an urban development vision 

that integrates information and communications technologies 

(ICT) to make cities work more effectively 

and efficiently. For developed economies this means 

ICT systems and innovative technologies are used to 

manage cities and assets including schools, hospitals, 

power plants, water supplies, transportation and 

waste management. 

On first reflection one may question Africa’s role in 

developing Smart Cities as premature, however the 

continent is no stranger to “leapfrogging” as mobile 

technology bears witness to this with solutions like 

M-Pesa, a mobile money platform that has transformed 

payment systems across the continent.We 

cannot under estimate Africa’s potential to leapfrog 

technologies and to lead the way through the development 

of ICT solutions that fit this market, but Africa 

faces many challenges and will not bring the added 

value ICT can offer to local economies unless there 

is:- 

- Stable access to energy 

- Basic ICT infrastructure 

- Appropriately skilled staff 

United Cities and Local Governments for Africa 

(UCLG-Africa) advocates and strives for the implementation 

of these three key prerequisites for 

successful development of SMART Cities in Africa. 

UCLG Africa is the umbrella organization and the 

united voice and representative of local governments 

and cities in Africa. With membership that stretches 

across the continent UCLG-Africa empowers all levels 

of subnational governments political leaders 

and administrations through research, knowledge 

sharing, training and capacity building. This includes 

supporting members to address the Smart Africa 

agenda, which is built around four, cross-cutting 

enablers. These enablers are (1) Innovation; (2) Communications 

and Advocacy; (3) Capacity Building; and 

(4) Resource Mobilization. 

The UNITED VOICE of Local Government in Africa 

Top 10 REASONS to Join UCLG Africa 

1. Become part of the second most important democratic organization 

on the African continent after the African Union. 

2. Gain access to a platform of resources and knowledge based on the 

exchange of experiences and on scientific work. 

3. Benefit from the support of UCLG Africa in your dialogues with your 

government on critical issues related to decentralization and local 

governance. 

4. Enhance your leadership and management capacity by participating 

in our programmes. 

5. Connect easily with your peers in Africa and beyond. 

6. Benefit from exchange of experiences and learning opportunities 

through the “ peer review”. 

7. Echo your voice in all regional, continental or global forums that 

discuss decentralization, governance and local development issues. 

8. Join the digital world and cross the digital bridge by owning your own 

webpage on UCLG Africa Internet portal “www.localafrica.org” 

9. Benefit from assistance in sourcing funds for your activities. 

10. Contribute to the dynamics of African integration through 

decentralized cooperation between local governments, including crossborder 

decentralized cooperation.

THE NEW MAGAZINE OF UCLG-A No 5/2016 

UCLG-A is uniquely positioned to support State, 

County and Provincial Governors or Premiers, Presidents 

of Regions, City Mayors and local government 

representatives rise to the challenge of Smart Africa 

and can provide practical support to its members. It 

helps them to 

INNOVATE: UCLG-A’s African Cities Magazine provides 

a platform to showcase innovation across Africa, 

sharing best practice and supporting knowledge 

transfer. The last edition of 2016 was dedicated to 

Smart Cities – The Africa Story. 

To get a copy of the latest African 

Cities Magazine visit www. 

issuu.com 

Smart Cities - the African story 

• African city startups • 

• Third Transform Summit • 

• Africa’s leapfrog potential • 

COMMUNICATE and ADVOCATE: The Africities 

SUMMIT, UCLG-Africa’s flagship event which takes 

place every three years, dedicates a series of workshops 

and meetings that promotes the development 

of a road map for Smart Cities given the many challenges 

African cities face. It brings together all partners 

involved in SMART cities development: public 

authorities; private sector; academia; ICT providers; 

civil society; associations of users and consumers; 

etc. 

For more information on the next 

Africities in 2018 please visit 

www.africities.org 

RESOURCE MOBILISATION: UCLG-Africa provides 

capacity support to its members through the exploration 

of access to innovative sources of funding such as 

Climate finance and innovative financing mechanisms 

such as Finance Pooling or Crowdfunding. UCLG- 

Africa also developed a training and knowledge 

sharing platform for the senior staff of subnational 

and local administrations through the development of 

professional networks, including the Network of Chief 

Financial Officers (Africa Finet), and the Network 

of City Managers/ CEOs (Africa MagNet), and the 

Network of Chief Technical Officers (Africa TechNet). 

For more information on how 

this network can support local 

government and city mayors’ 

teams contact UCLG-Africa. 

CAPACITY BUILDING: Training and capacity building 

provides the key to develop effective and efficient 

local governments and cities across Africa. UCLG-Africa 

has set up The African Local Government Academy 

(ALGA) to address the serious Human Resources 

challenges and skills gaps faced by many local government 

authorities. 

For more information on ALGA 

visit www.localafrica.org 

Overall UCLG – Africa has been instrumental in the 

adoption of the African Charter on values and principles 

of decentralisation, local governance, and local 

development which was adopted on June 2014 in 

Malabo, Equatorial Guinea. In 2017 moving forward 

UCLG-Africa members and secretariat will push for 

the effective establishment of the High Council of Local 

Authorities as a consultative body of the African 

Union, that was also agreed in Malabo in 2014. 

Contacts: 22, street Essaadyine, Hassan - Rabat 

Kingdom of Morocco 

Tel Fax : +212 537 26 00 62 / + 212 537 26 00 63 + 212 537 26 00 60 

Email : info@uclga.org www.localafrica.org / www.Africities.org


Ebele Agu postulates on the plethora of opportunities 

more women in STEM jobs could afford Africa – from 

closing the gender pay gap to a change in spending 

habits that could benefit the continent’s youth. 

Encouraging 

women 

into STEM 

industries 

The fields of science, technology, 

engineering, and mathematics, 

collectively known as STEM, 

have always suffered from a 

lack of women, but more so in 

sub-Saharan Africa. Men tend to 

dominate these sectors, and the numbers 

continue to look grim for women. 

A recent report from the World Bank noted 

that if African economies are to meet their 

promising economic potential, ‘smartly targeted 

investments’ in higher education are essential. 

This smart investment should embrace STEM 

fields, which can be transformational as 

economies evolve. 

The same report acknowledges that research 

in these areas has doubled on the continent over 

the last decade but it is still wanting. This is 

especially so considering the region’s share of 

global research output in physical sciences and 

STEM-related areas is slightly less than 1% – a 

meagre sum considering the continent’s share of 

global population, which stands at 12%. 

At the heart of this expansion will be a need 

to bring female students into the fold, and it has 

to start at a lower level before they proceed to 

enrol in the growing number of colleges and 

universities all across the continent. Indeed, 

UNESCO is of the view that targeting young 

women and equipping them with the necessary 

skillset needed in the 21st century will not only 

>20,000 

The number of 

secondary school 

students impacted by 

WAAW in countries 

across Africa. 

help bridge the gender gap, but also make of 

them powerful agents of change. 

During the Women in Science (WiSci) Girls’ 

STEAM Camp held in Rwanda between July and 

August 2015, the UN joined forces with the 

United States mission to UNESCO to impart 

upon female students skills in computer science, 

robotics, design, art, and culture. This saw 30 

female students from high schools in the US 

study alongside 90 female students from various 

African countries. The objective was to address 

gender inequality at the high school level, and 

the importance of making good education 

decisions with regard to college and career, as 

well as encourage the girls to venture into the 

male-dominated STEM fields. 

UN Women is tasked with promoting 

gender equality and women empowerment, 

and continues to focus on guaranteeing 

the development of the next generation of 

women leaders in the fields of STEM through 

its numerous initiatives targeted at less 

privileged countries in Africa, Central Asia, 

and the Middle East. 

The Working to Advance STEM education for 

African Women (WAAW) foundation also 

warrants a mention for the major advances 

made towards reducing the gap between the 

number of African girls venturing into STEM 

fields in relation to boys, its efforts to encourage 

young women to pursue STEM careers and 



Training of engineers in the project 

Integrated Polytechnic Regional Center IPR, 

Kigali, Rwanda 

ensure they are engaged in technology 

innovation and entrepreneurship to benefit 

Africa. The core target of this non-profit 

organisation – which runs multiple STEM 

hands-on programmes – is sub-Saharan African 

girls aged between 11 and 30 years, and 

particularly those who hail from underprivileged 

backgrounds: the poor, the disadvantaged, the 

marginalised; not forgetting disabled girls. 

WAAW foundation has firmly stamped its 

mark in countries like Nigeria, South Africa, 

Ghana, Cameroon, Ethiopia and Kenya – so much 

so that its college-to-secondary outreach and 

mentoring programmes have impacted over 

20,000 secondary school girls to date. Thirty-one 

college scholarships have been awarded, over 

200 college fellows have been trained and nearly 

200 secondary students have participated in 

STEM Camps. 

A lot of potential 

It is good to note that there exists a 

direct correlation between increased female 

labour force and faster economic growth: 

economies grow when more women work. 

And if evidence from multiple countries in 

Africa is anything to go by, increasing the 

amount of household income controlled by 

women (whether through cash transfers or 

their own earnings) alters spending in ways 

that benefit children. 

Ute Grabowsky/Photothek via Getty Images 

1% 

of AU Member States’ 

GDP is encouraged to 

be invested in STEM 

development 

Globally, on average men are paid more than 

women. However, pursuing careers and 

leadership in STEM disciplines ensures this 

wage gap is drastically reduced because, 

apparently, these careers have greater gender 

parity when it comes to pay. 

African states that make it a priority to 

ensure more women acquire STEM skills would 

only be doing themselves a favour, because 

STEM and economies are closely woven 

together. It results in job creation, and the 

butterfly effect can be felt in other sectors 

such as – in addition to cornerstone pillars 

such as agriculture and health – housing and 

community development. 

But long gone are the days when African 

economies relied on agricultural produce as 

their main offering. As much as it remains a 

key cog in the wheel of many an economy, 

diversification is the key to the future. 

Acquiring STEM skills will determine how 

bright that future is likely to be. 

As pointed out by the Chairperson 

of the African Union HE Dr Nkosazana 

Dlamini Zuma at the third Annual African 

First Ladies Discussion on Science, Technology, 

Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), African 

development will not happen at the pace and 

depth it needs to without the empowerment 

of girls, youth and women, especially in the 

STEM areas. The development of skills in these 

areas is needed “to modernise agriculture and 

agro-processing; to build, expand and maintain 

our infrastructure; to develop manufacturing 

and add value to our natural resources and to 

mitigate and adapt to climate change,” Zuma 

went on to explain. 

Last word 

The fact is STEM transforms the world 

and shapes our future. You need not think 

far from the changes brought about by the 

discovery of penicillin, or the invention of the 

light bulb, or airplanes, or computers. We need 

to see more inclusive measures taken to make 

women part of the future. 

STEM is the key to solving many problems 

plaguing not just Africa, but the world as a 

whole – from filtering drinking water, to utilising 

cleaner sources of energy, to finding a cure for 

cancer. It is imperative that we get women in 

on the act too. 

Innovation is the keystone of economic 

development of any nation, and investing in 

human capacity with relation to STEM is 

critical to this. If the African continent is to 

thrive economically, it is important to have 

many more women participate in innovation 

and STEM in general. • 


Foreword 

Africa’s integration is the only 

option for Africa to leapfrog into 

development that brings a positive 

change to the lives of its people 

The Continental Free 

Trade Area (CFTA) is 

one of the key pillars of 

the vision of the African 

Union embedded in 

Agenda 2063. It is also 

an essential enabler for the structural 

transformation and sustainable 

economic development of the 

continent. In this regard, the first-ever 

Africa Trade Week organised by 

the African Union Commission in 

November 2016 underscored the 

importance of looking inwards, 

through the CFTA as our top priority. 

Africa’s integration is the only 

option for Africa to leapfrog into 

development that brings a positive 

change to the lives of its people. 

Africa’s top leadership is fully aware 

and committed to the establishment of 

the CFTA. It was one of the two topics 

discussed alongside financing the 

African Union in a closed session of 

Heads of State and Government at the 

July 2016 African Union Summit of 

Kigali. It was again the subject of 

deliberations of the Strategic Retreat 

of Ministers of Foreign Affairs early 

December in Addis Ababa. In fact, 

progress on the CFTA will be 

reviewed at each Summit of the 

African Union. 

Evolution of trade 

The establishment of the CFTA is an 

imperative, especially within this new 

era of anti-globalisation on one hand 

and the changing international trade 

landscape on the other. The 

multilateral trading system is not 

living up to expectations. Many of the 

largest countries in the world, and 

Africa’s most significant trading 

partners, are moving towards the 

establishment of Mega-Regional Trade 

Agreements. These include the 

Transatlantic Trade and Investment 

Partnership, the Trans-Pacific 

Partnership, and the Regional 

Comprehensive Economic 

Partnership. Various studies have 

demonstrated the meaningful 

implications of these agreements on 

Africa, including preference erosion, 

and highlighted that the continent 

would be better positioned and better 

off if we move to establish the CFTA as 

quickly as possible. 


Foreword 

HE Fatima 

Haram Acyl 

Commissioner for Trade and Industry 


With a market of around 1.1 billion 

people, one of the biggest in the world, 

a growing middle class, the highest 

number of young people, and the rate of 

urbanisation ranking one of the highest in 

the world, Africa has the ingredients and 

assets to benefit from deepening and 

broadening economic integration at the 

regional and continental levels. Its 

integration will be critical to its 

industrialisation agenda through the 

pooling of productive capacities, 

establishment of regional value chains, 

markets and the development of 

economies of scale. One of the most 

important factors for the success of the 

CFTA will be the diversification of our 

economies through inclusive and 

sustainable industrial development and 

value addition to our raw materials. Paying 

a particular attention to the harmonisation 

and support of the standards and quality 

of our products for market access and 

enhancing their competitiveness is another 

significant point, as we are 

moving forward with the 

implementation of the BIAT 

Action Plan, especially the 

cluster on Trade Facilitation 

as well as the WTO Trade 

Facilitation Agreement. 

CFTA will be the 

diversification of our 

economies through inclusive 

and sustainable development 

Various empirical studies revealed that 

the implementation of the CFTA will double 

intra-African trade to 22% by 2022. Africa 

has been depending on outside markets 

for its resources and has been hence 

subjected to the whims of external demand 

and falling commodity prices, especially 

of oil. Another reason for Africa to look 

inwards and to diversify is the fact that the 

United States which was a major oil trade 

partner of Africa is itself soon becoming 

the first oil producer of the world. 

Sustainable economic growth should 

rather rely on internal demand. 

The Trade Week was organised in order 

to provide a platform for fruitful and 

stimulating dialogue among all 

stakeholders to the CFTA. The CFTA 

process should carry along all segments 

of society in order to ensure success. The 

first ever African Economic Platform to be 

organised by the African Union in March 

2017 will also give the opportunity to the 

most successful businesses in Africa to 

be sensitised about the CFTA and also to 

advise on the way forward, as they are 

the ones who will be bringing it to 

fruition, carrying along the private sector, 

particularly SMEs where women and youth 

are the majority. 

Moving the continent forward 

The CFTA process is an all-inclusive 

process. Some countries have set up 

national committees on the CFTA bringing 

together government, private sector, civil 

society and academicians. We encourage 

others to follow suit so that we can move 

our continent forward together for the 

welfare of our people. • 

CFTA HISTORY 

in January 2012 the African 

Union Heads of State 

adopted a decision to 

establish the CFTA by 2017. 

The Summit also endorsed 

the Action Plan on Boosting 

Intra-Africa Trade which 

identifies seven clusters: 

trade policy, trade 

facilitation, productive 

capacity, trade related 

infrastructure, trade 

finance, trade information, 

and factor market 

integration. The CFTA will 

bring together fifty-four 

African countries with a 

combined population of 

more than one billion 

people and a combined 

gross domestic product of 

more than US $3.4 trillion. 


TRADE & INTEGRATION 

Trade & integration 

Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) 

in Mombasa is East Africa’s 

busiest port 



Towards a 

Continental 

Free Trade Area 

Africa remains on track to establish a CFTA in 2017, uniting 54 

nations with a combined population of more than one billion 

people and GDP in excess of $3.4 trillion, writes Julian Turner 

In December 2010, Africa trade ministers 

agreed on a fast track agenda for a 

Continental Free Trade Area (CFTA) 

aimed at abolishing tariffs and quotas 

on goods and services among African 

countries. The largest such free trade 

bloc in the world, it would unite 54 nations with 

a population of over one billion people and a 

gross domestic product in excess of $3.4 trillion. 

Part of a wider global trend of megaregional 

trade agreements that includes the 

Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership 

(TTIP) between the EU and the US, and the 

Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) comprising 12 

countries including the US, Canada, Japan and 

Australia, the CFTA would enable Africa to 

compete from a position of strength in an 

increasingly interconnected global marketplace. 

“The CFTA has huge potential to advance 

the intra-Africa trade agenda, unlock Africa’s 

economic opportunities, and deliver growth 

and prosperity for all,” says Moono Mupotola, 

director of the NEPAD Regional Integration 

and Trade Department at the African 


Trevor Snapp/Bloomberg via Getty Images 



CFTA OBJECTIVES: 

IN BRIEF 

• Create a single 

continental market 

for goods and 

services, including 

free movement of 

business persons 

and investments, 

paving the way for the 

establishment of the 

Continental Customs 

Union by 2019 as 

provided for in 

the Abuja Treaty 

establishing the African 

Economic Community. 

• Expand intra-African 

trade through better 

harmonisation and 

coordination of trade 

liberalisation and 

facilitation regimes 

and instruments across 

the eight RECs and 

Africa in general. 

• Resolve the challenges 

of multiple and 

overlapping 

memberships and 

expedite the regional 

and continental 

integration processes. 

• Enhance 

competitiveness at the 

industry and enterprise 

level through exploiting 

opportunities for scale 

production, continental 

market access and 

better reallocation of 

resources. 

Source: AfDB 

“An integrated Africa, operating 

as one economic unit, will be better 

able to join the global economy and 

negotiate better trade terms. The CFTA 

also addresses core challenges of 

underdevelopment and lack of inclusive 

growth by removing tariffs and 

non-tariff barriers on goods and services 

traded within the continent, stimulating 

the flow of investment, as well as 

addressing key issues related to 

investment, competition, intellectual 

property and movement of business 

persons within Africa.” 

Lessons from the TFTA 

The United Nations Economic 

Commission for Africa (UNECA) 

estimates that the CFTA could increase 

trade between African countries by 

$35 billion by 2022, an increase of 

more than 50% from current levels. 

At present, business between African 

nations languishes at just over 14% 

of their total trade. 

“By pursuing a developmental 

integration strategy that emphasises 

infrastructure development and 

industrialisation, the CFTA will address 

challenges that have so far bedevilled 

the regional integration process and 

facilitate an integration that goes beyond 

an agreement on paper,” states Mupotola. 

“This is particularly important when 

you consider that many African goods 

are exported to African markets. The 

CFTA would help to create a bigger 

market for value-added African products, 

diversify regional economies, promote 

industrialisation in sectors with huge 

employment potential such as 

agriculture and agro-processing, and 

boost the competitiveness of products 

via economies of scale.” 

In June 2015 in Egypt, African leaders 

gave a historic boost to intra-African 

business by creating the continent’s 

largest free-trade zone. The Tripartite 

Free Trade Area (TFTA) covers 26 

countries and unites three existing 

trade blocs − the Southern African 

Development Community (SADC), the 

East African Community (EAC) and 

the Common Market for Eastern and 

Southern Africa (COMESA). 

Progress since then has been 

relatively slow, however, and while the 

CFTA represents the logical final stage in 

Africa’s free trade evolution, Mupotola 

stresses that the right lessons must be 

learned. 

“Even though the TFTA has been 

signed, the negotiations are still ongoing 

and then there are the conflicting 

approaches and disciplines of the various 

regional economic communities (RECs),” 

Mupotola says. “Africa has signed a 

number of bilateral, regional and 

multilateral agreements, especially those 

involving third parties outside of Africa. 

There is a need to rationalise and 

harmonise all of those trading 

arrangements and to align them with 

the CFTA objective. 

“Nevertheless, conditions for 

achieving continental integration have 

improved. The TFTA makes ratifying 

the CFTA much easier than having to 

negotiate as individual countries or 

from the position of many fragmented 

regional economic blocs. Agenda 2063 

provides the added impetus and African 

countries have demonstrated a strong 

political will to achieve the regional 

integration objective.” 

A problem of perception 

McKinsey reports that by 2040, 1.1 billion 

Africans will be of working age and that 

half of Africa’s population will reside in 

cities. Forging a dynamic, united nation 

commensurate with the ambition of 

this educated middle class is a test that 

leaders attending the 2017 African Union 

Summit in Addis Ababa cannot afford 

to fail if the world’s second largest 

continent is to fulfil its global potential. 

Mupotola remains optimistic that 

ratification of the CFTA in 2017 – in 

tandem with the implementation of the 

Action Plan on Boosting Intra-African 

Trade (BIAT), which contains concrete 

targets to double intra-African trade 

flows from January 2012 and January 

2022 – is “ambitious but also achievable 

if countries keep up the momentum 

already established. A full operational 

CFTA requires ratification and 

mechanisms for implementation, 

and at the national level in Africa 

this takes longer. 

“However, it is expected that with 

continuing political support, and through 

national and regional mobilisation, 

African leaders will support the timely 

inauguration of the CFTA in 2017.” • 



Moono Mupotola, division 

manager on regional 

integration and trade at the 

African Development Bank 

14% 

of the total trade 

of business among 

African nations 

$3.4 TR 

combined GDP of 

the 54 African states 

$35BN 

Amount CFTA could 

boost intraregional 

trade by 

Source: The Brookings Institution 

CFTA has huge potential 

to advance the intra- 

Africa trade agenda 

and unlock Africa’s 

economic opportunities 



Trudi Hartzenberg explores how a review of transnational 

boundary regulations, infrastructural investment and synergies 

between the WTO’s and Africa’s trading agendas could pave the 

way to a fully-integrated, intracontinental trade network 

Regional 

integration 

In recent years, Africa’s regional 

integration discourse is focusing on a 

‘developmental regional integration’ 

paradigm. Developmental integration is 

anchored on three pillars – namely market 

integration, industrial development, and 

infrastructure – and features prominently in the 

Continental Free Trade Area (CFTA) agenda, too. 

The market integration agenda, specifically a 

trade-in-goods agenda, has been the hallmark of 

African integration. Africa’s need for better 

infrastructure (roads, rail, energy, water, ICT) is 

not contested, and the infrastructure deficit is well 

documented as a contributor to high costs of trade 

and doing business across the continent. The 

inclusion of industrial development in this 

paradigm reminds us that Africa’s fundamental 

challenge of producing goods and services 

competitively, and that policy recognition of the 

linkages across agriculture, industry and services 

should be a feature of industrial policy. 

This high-level definition of developmental 

regional integration is persuasive; but it needs to 

be translated into a practical agenda that will 

address the challenges African economies and 

societies face in the 21st century. 

A review of trade and integration matters 

An often-used indicator to measure progress in 

terms of market integration is intra-regional trade. 

According to the African Economic Outlook, an 

annual publication of the AfDB, OECD and UNDP, in 

2002, intra-African trade accounted for 10% of the 

continent’s total trade; in 2014 it had reached 16%, 

still the lowest of all continents. This figure masks 

important sub-regional differences among regional 

economic communities. In 2014, East African 

Community (EAC) and Southern African 

Development Community (SADC) are the most 

integrated by this measure; SADC recorded the 

highest proportion of intra-regional trade at 19.3%, 

with EAC following close behind at 18.4%. The 

Southern African Customs Union (SACU) and the 

West Africa Economic and Monetary Union 

(WAEMU) follow, hovering around 15%. The lowest 

proportion of intra-regional trade is recorded by 

the Central African Economic and Monetary 

Community (CEMAC) at just 2.1%. 

Although tariff liberalisation can encourage 

intra-regional trade, there is ample evidence that 

Non-Tariff Barriers (NTBs), including burdensome 

customs and border procedures, high costs of 

transport and the use of standards and regulatory 

measures to protect domestic producers, are 

important trade barriers – as H.G. Jensen and 

R. Sandrey argue in their paper, ‘The Continental 

Free Trade Area – A GTAP Assessment’ – with 

specifically pernicious effects on agricultural trade 

in Africa. While non-tariff measures may well have 

legitimate public policy objectives to protect 

human, animal and plant health as well as the 

environment, they can be implemented in such a 

way as to restrict trade. Eliminating NTBs and 

providing recourse to address NTBs, especially for 

private producers and traders, is an essential 

building block of a well-integrated region. 

Rules of Origin (RoO) 

RoO can also constitute an NTB; protecting 

domestic industry from import competition. In 

SADC, the RoO require a two-stage transformation 

process, so that both fabric and garment have to be 

produced in this REC, for garments to qualify for 

preferential duties. With limited textile production, 

this is very difficult, limiting intra-regional clothing 

trade. RoO should serve the purpose of preventing 



iStock/Vlada_Z 

trade deflection, but be simple, transparent and 

easy to monitor and implement. If not, they defeat 

the objective of the integration project. 

Trade facilitation features prominently in the 

integration agenda; this is where an important 

synergy between the World Trade Organisation’s 

(WTO) agenda and Africa’s integration agenda can 

be developed. Trade facilitation is closely linked to 

Africa’s infrastructure development priorities, for 

example port and transport projects. These can 

provide a significant reduction to time in transit 

and associated trade costs. Carlos Lopes, ECA 

Executive Secretary, notes that port throughput in 

Africa is expected to increase from 265 million 

tonnes in 2009 to more than two-billion tons by 

2040. Efforts to expand the capacity and improve 

the efficiency of the Dar es Salaam port are a 

noteworthy example. Performance in the first 

quarter of the 2016/2017 financial year has exceeded 

targets, and specific efforts to serve as the port of 

choice for Rwanda’s markets are also paying off. 

Longer opening hours, e-payment systems and 

enhanced security at the port are part of the 

package of initiatives to enhance port performance. 

Government has also, in an attempt to improve the 

speed of cargo delivery, reduced the number of 

checkpoints from 23 to three. 

Infrastructure development also requires 

appropriate regulation to ensure access to 

competitively priced and reliable supplies to 

infrastructure services such as transport, 

communications and energy. To support 

cross-border trade and investment, harmonisation 

of regulations may well be important. This provides 

an important link to the trade in services agenda. 

Added value 

United Nations Conference on Trade and 

Development’s (UNCTAD) 2015 review of Africa’s 

services trade indicates that for 21 African 

countries (excluding South Sudan), services 

contributed more than 50% to total value added, 

for the period from 2009 to 2012, and for 32.4% of 

total employment over the same period. 

While services also contribute to manufacturing 

competitiveness, links among services sectors 

enhance overall economic performance and 

development outcomes. Linkages between ICT 

and education or health care, for example, can 

contribute directly to make these services 

accessible to rural households. Synergies, therefore, 

between the trade in services and trade in goods 

agendas are important. Lower tariffs on ICT goods, 

for example, can amplify the positive outcomes of 

integration in areas like healthcare and education. 

The trade integration agenda has clearly 

swept way beyond the traditional scope of trade in 

goods to reflect the reality of a 21st century Africa, 

which demands active participation from across 

economy and society to shape the continent’s 

development outcomes. • 



Julius Erukilede explains how Africa must – quite 

literally – pave the way to its own success, attracting 

investors to fund infrastructure and logistic systems 

that can support exponential growth of industry 

One continent 

with varied 

opportunities 

Amid the low commodity 

price, tightening 

financials, and regional 

shocks, many people 

are questioning 

whether Africa’s recent 

economic advances are running out of 

steam. However, African economic 

growth is showing signs of resilience. 

Africa is the world’s fastest-growing 

economy after East Asia with a real GDP 

at 3.6% (2015 estimate) higher than the 

3.1% for the global economy and 1.5% 

for the European Union bloc and a 

moderate 3.7% and 4.5% for 2016 and 

2017 respectively according to Africa 


Despite the economic growth in 

recent decades, inadequate transport 

and logistics infrastructure remain 

major obstacles towards achieving 

Africa’s full economic growth potential. 

Africa’s transport and logistics 

infrastructure is dilapidated, which has 

a direct consequence on its capacity to 

import and export goods, distribution 

and frequency of shipments, the costs of 

freight handling, and storage 

infrastructure, amongst other factors. 

According to OECD, only 27.6% of 

Africa’s two million km of roads are 

paved, with a sizeable percentage filled 

with potholes. The rail, air and sea 

infrastructure is no better. For instance, 

the Tanzania–Zambia Railways, despite 

almost four decades of operations, is 

faced with underutilisation of the rail 

lines linked with frequent breakdowns 

and derailments of trains. Consequently, 

poor road, rail and harbour 

infrastructure adds 30–40% to the 

costs of goods traded among African 

countries, according to Infrastructure 

Construction for Africa (ICA). 

New realities, new opportunities 

A World Bank study showed that, while 

$93 billion is needed annually over the 

next decade to overhaul sub-Saharan 

African infrastructure, only about $25 

billion is being spent annually on capital 

expenditure, leaving a substantial 

shortfall that has to be financed. But 

the PwC’s Africa gearing up: Future 

prospects in Africa for the 

transportation & logistics 

industry noted that, despite the rather 

disappointing figures, there are some 

positive signs of growth in transport 

and logistics investment potential 

across Africa. 

Specifically, the €230 million 

Dakar–Diamniadio toll road that opened 

in August 2013 remains a flagship of a 

new reality showing that Africa is ready 

for massive investment. According to 

the World Bank, Dakar–Diamniadio is 

the first greenfield road Public Private 

Partnership (PPP) in sub-Saharan 

Africa with a strong commitment of 

development institutions in both public 

and private financing. The success of 

the project played a major role in the 

further concession of the motorway that 

connects Dakar’s new Blaise Diagne 

International Airport. 

Unlike China and India – where 

population is expected to flatten in the 

2020s –Africa’s population growth will 

continue beyond 2030. Cities like Lagos 

with 22 million inhabitants today will 



Over 70% of the 

world’s largest 

consumer goods 

companies already 

operate in Africa 

$28.8bn 

The estimated increase in 

logistics spending in Africa by 

manufacturers and retailers 

between 2012 and 2016. 

38.4% 

The amount the outsourced 

logistics market is estimated to 

have grown between 2012 and 

2016. 

Jogging is common along the new motorway outside Dakar 

in Pictures Ltd./Corbis via Getty Images 

double their size in about 10 to 15 years. 

To facilitate better connectivity and 

accessibility, it is critical that African 

skies are fully opened. African leaders 

are working on boosting regional 

agreements on market access, and on 

facilitation of transport of passengers 

and cargo by air. As of 2017, Africa’s 

single air transport market for African 

airlines will become effective. This 

creates a huge opportunity to connect 

African businesses and enables them to 

move their goods because the continent 

envisages a boom in trade. 

For logistics companies, prospects 

in Africa’s retail and manufacturing 

sectors are significant, as the continent 

witnesses the growth of the middle 

class. Over 70% of the world’s largest 

consumer goods companies already 

operate in Africa. Emerging local 

entities are joining the sector, prompting 

keen observers to predict that Africa’s 

retail markets will grow substantially 

over the next decade. 

The transportation and logistics of 

food products hold mouth-watering 

potential, but there is need for vast 

investment in cold-chain services and 

temperature controlled storage 

facilities. At the moment, about 50% of 

farm produce does not make it to the 

market. In Uganda, a start-up, Tugende, 

has reinvented the wheel by using 

existing motorcycle drivers to create a 

logistic service to transport farm 

produce from rural area to city centres, 

helping local farmers to make profit and 

also creating jobs for the teeming youth. 

But as more African countries move to 

higher levels of food processing and 

trade in food products grows, an 

efficient transport and logistics 

services will be vital. 

Addressing Africa’s growth 

phenomenon, Charles Brewer, the 

Managing Director of DHL Express 

sub-Saharan Africa, argues that 

beyond optimism, the shipment 

numbers make the case for a positive 

outlook for Africa: “Our dependency on 

Europe has been reduced, while trade 

with Asia, as well as intra-Africa, has 

picked up significantly”. 

The 2016 New Partnership for Africa 

Development (NEPAD) Move Africa 

report estimated that trade volumes in 

sub-Saharan Africa will more than triple 

from 102.6 million tonnes in 2009 to 384 

million tonnes in 2030 as the continent 

leaders forge ahead with the creation 

of trade corridors. 

As of today, consumption is already 

on the move. According to Deloitte, 

consumption on the continent rose to 

more than $1 trillion in 2012, from $364 

million in 2000 representing an annual 

growth rate of 10.7%. The African 

Development Bank (AfDB) approximated 

that a third of the continent spends 

between $4 to $20 a day and the group 

is expected to grow to 42% by 2060. 

With approximately 50% of the 

continent expected to have access to the 

internet by 2025, Mckinsey reported that 

ecommerce sales could be in for a $75 

billion or 10% boost of the total Africa’s 

retail sales. In South Africa, where the 

culture of online purchase is well 

established, PayFast, a local payment 

gateway firm, stated that 33% of the 

people it surveyed made 10 or more 

purchases online per year. 

One Africa, varied needs 

While Africa’s prospects remain strong, 

individual countries have varied needs. 

In Nigeria, Africa’s biggest economy, 



BeyondImages/iStock 

African cargo train between 

Zimbabwe and Zambia 

while milestones have been 

achieved in port development and 

concessions in recent years, the 

country still needs to address a number 

of challenges in this regard. 

To tackle this problem, earlier in 

2016, Kemi Adeosun, the Finance 

Minister building on the successful 

completion of the Chino–Nigerian 

financed $850 million Abuja–Kaduna 

high-speed railway project, unveiled a 

$25 billion overhaul of Nigeria’s 

transport network to complement the 

country’s diversification drive, which 

is expected to stimulate the economy. 

For investors looking for 

opportunities to grow their market 

share and investment earnings, the East 

African states remain a toast. Kenya 

recently laid the foundation stone for its 

1.3 trillion shillings ultra-modern 

railway network that originates in 

Mombasa and travels 500km to 

airobi in its first phase, prompting 

infrastructure experts to estimate that 

on completion, the cost of cargo 

transport will reduce by 60%. Other 

projects of importance in the region 

include the 260km Arusha–Holili–Voi 

Road, which is in the final design stages, 

the 400km Malindi–Lunga Lunga Road, 

Tanga–Bagamoyo Road, the 92km 

Lusahunga–Rusumo Road and the 

70km Kayonza–Kigali Road, both 

linking Tanzania and Rwanda. 

In Botswana, the Sir Seretse Khama 

International Airport (SSKIA) in 

Gaborone has been identified as an air 

cargo hub to handle perishable goods. 

It is thought that the hub could attract 

both freight and passenger airlines to 

provide cargo capacity at SSKIA. 

Conclusion 

Inadequate transport and logistics 

infrastructure remains a challenge to 

Africa’s long-term growth, but it also 

presents a significant opportunity 

for investors to finance assets such 

as ports, railway lines, and toll road. 

For investors who are ready to 

undertake the detailed research 

required to understand Africa’s unique 

transport and logistics challenges 

and are ready to be part of a 20–30 

–year infrastructure development, 

African countries offer opportunities 

that guarantee long-term policy 

stability, revenue certainty and high 

government priority. • 

KSh1.3tN 

Cost of the ultra-modern 

railway network from 

Mombasa to Nairobi. 


African Agribusiness Incubators Network 

Growing Africa’s agribusiness 

African Agribusiness Incubators 

Network (AAIN) is a private sector 

initiative whose core mandate is to 

“Strengthen agribusiness incubation 

capacity as well as commercialise 

agricultural technologies and innovation 

in Africa.” 

The network was formed in November 

2014 and registered in 2015 in Accra, 

Ghana and since then has over 110 

registered members drawn from the 

African continent and beyond. AAIN serves 

individuals, organisation or firms 

interested in agribusiness incubation in 

Africa whiles providing technical support 

in agribusiness development through 

incubation and mentorship, off-taking 

innovations and technologies from 

research for commercialisation. 

AAIN works across knowledge 

platforms to facilitate private sector 

engagement and support of youth 

mentorship, technology adaptation, 

localisation and commercialisation. AAIN 

has pioneered and co-created a novel 

Learn as You Earn education model. It 

was co-created through the Universities, 

Business and Research collaboration 

and promotes agribusiness education 

incubation and enriched further through 

the universities private sector forums. 

AAIN has developed an Agribusiness 

Incubation Agenda for Africa, with four 

investment focus areas, amongst them, 

has established the African Agribusiness 

Incubation Fund (AAIF), as a financial 

and technical support service for 

agribusiness incubation. 

Vision: 

To be the hub of innovation for African 

agri-business incubation 

Mission: 

Incubating agribusiness incubators 

through advancing entrepreneurial 

talent, networking, integrating science 

and technology for job and wealth 

creation in Africa. 

Business Focus 

• African Agribusiness Innovation Fund 

• Business incubation and Enterprise 

Development 

• Market development and linkages 

• Agribusiness Education 

• Youth and Women in Agribusiness 

investment support 

• Initiate and coordinate 

implementation of the bio economy 

strategy 

Objectives 

• To facilitate establishment and growth 

of sustainable agribusiness incubators 

• To enhance knowledge management, 

information, best practices and lessons 

learnt in agribusiness 

• To facilitate and coordinate innovative 

business models for agribusiness 

financing and investment 

• To promote and enhance access to 

market for the network’s agribusiness 

incubators 

• Strengthen the capacity of AAIN and


Our achievements 

Since our inception we have been working greatly 

with three development objectives at heart, below 

are the results of our work under these objectives. 

Commercialisation of agribusiness innovations 

supported and promoted 

• Seven incubators directly supported in Africa 

under UniBRAIN 

• 186 start-ups supported to operate their 

businesses 

• 120 start-ups established 

• 75 technologies commercialised 

• $4.8 million income generated both directly and 

indirectly 

• 25,000 farmers and households reached 

• 400 incubatees supported at the incubators 

Agribusiness graduates with potential to become 

efficient entrepreneurs produced by tertiary 

educational institutions 

• The development of The Agribusiness Curriculum 

Framework for Certificate, Diploma, Bachelors, 

Masters and PhD levels (ANAFE) 

• 158 African universities reached and six 

universities Europe and North America 

• Over 850 graduate interns supported 

• Over 1,400 students at Diploma, BSc and 

MSc levels have benefited from improved 

education products 

UniBRAIN’s innovative outputs experiences and 

practices shared and up-scaled 

• 20 Additional business partnerships have 

been forged 

• Eight additional incubators have been set up based 

on the model and funded by other development 

partners. Five other new incubators in the pipeline 

• 31 Countries to adopt the AAIN Model in the 

implementation of AfDB supported ENABLE 

youth programme 

• 54 African countries mobilized to use AAIN/ 

UniBRAIN model to implement the AAIP in 

partnership with AUC Directorate of Rural 

Economy and Agriculture 

• 29 European Union countries have been mobilised 

and are committed to support the model 

• 350 mentors have been profiled to provide service 

to incubator/incubates 

its partners to deliver on agribusiness 

incubation 

OUR CORE INVESTMENT AREAS 

Agribusiness education and 

entrepreneurship promotion 

AAIN uses creative tools to transform 

education, capacitate mentors and 

build the capacity of incubation systems 

in Agribusiness. AAIN has developed 

education curricula from certificate to 

PhD level on agribusiness. 

Technology and innovations 

commercialisation 

AAIN supports start-ups, SMEs, incubators, 

women, men and youth to off-take new 

ideas, innovations and technologies from 

research to commercialisation. It also 

supports technology development and 

transfer as part of the drive to 

mechanisation. AAIN de-risks the process 

of commercialisation on to improve the 

investment climate. 

Youth engagement in agribusiness 

incubation, trade and investment 

The Youth Engagement Strategy (YES) 

aims to turn youth into successful 

agribusiness entrepreneurs, support 

them to access financing, assist them 

acquire new technologies and innovations, 

and redesign the curricula to make 

education responsive to the market 

needs and trends. 

African Agribusiness Incubation Fund 

African Agribusiness Incubation Fund 

(AAIF) addresses one of the barriers for 

youth to enter into agribusiness. The 

financing is accessed by incubators, Small 

Scale Incubator Hubs, incubatees, students, 

SMEs, cooperatives or individuals with 

ideas worth spreading. 

Partners and networks 

We have a continental network of 

institutions working on agribusiness 

incubation spanning 54 countries network 

with contact focal points in seven African 

countries; Kenya, Uganda, Zambia, Mali, 

Ghana, Benin, South Africa, and Malawi. 

Our key actors and partner span across 

the below: 

• Financial institutions 

• Input and output suppliers 

• Development actor and partners 


Nii Noi Kwame Street, 

North Dzorwulu, Accra, Ghana 

+233 501 481 646 (Mobile) 

http://africaain.org


AAIN’s technical infrastructure in Africa 

Since 2010, AAIN/UniBRAIN has been 

working on agribusiness incubation in 

over seven African countries. AAIN has 

gained experience in agribusiness 

incubation, learnt lessons, developed 

new incubation models, tested its 

approaches to partnership, developed 

partnerships to enhance incubation 

performance, profiled agribusiness 

technologies for commercialisation, and 

documented its approaches and best 

practices. The company recently 

developed agribusiness incubation tool 

box 2016 which is now used by its 

members and mentors to provide 

technical support to emerging 

incubators in Africa. 

A summary of AAIN technical 


• MoUs with the African Union as a 

technical development partner for 

agribusiness incubation development 

in Africa. 

• 110 Agribusiness and Business 

incubator members with vast 

experience in incubation and 

incubation models for economic 

transformation. 

• Developed model for agribusiness 

incubation financing and innovative 

access to finance for starts and small 

scale farmers in Africa (AAIF) 

• Have proven agribusiness incubation 

model and approaches for job and 

wealth creation-UniBRAIN model 

with evidence of results in over 

11 African Countries 

• 510 Mentors in place to support 

incubates and SMEs in business start, 

growth and business acceleration. 

• 158 African Universities and 8 Global 

Universities linked to AAIN 

agribusiness education and 24 

University Private Sector Forums 

for agribusiness. 

• Six MoUs Africa based sub-regional 

research organisations and 

international research organisations 

to facilitate access to technologies and 

innovations for commercialisation 

• Possess Africa based tested tools and 

guidelines for agribusiness incubation 

(AAIN incubation tool box 2016) 

• Linked to over 50,000 commercial 

supply chain actors and clusters in 

Africa and its members 

• Certificate and award winner of 

Global Agribusiness Incubators 

Network 2014 

• Composed 350 incubators across 

the world 

• Have proven model for youth 

engagement in agribusiness trade and 

investment in Africa (Earn as you learn 

model and UniBRAIN model) 

• Seven regional agribusiness incubation 

contact offices and centres of 

excellence in incubation 

• Proven model for public private sector 

partnership and engagement 

frameworks for mutual benefits and 

accountability 

• Agenda for agribusiness incubation in 

Africa through AAIP 2016 to 2020


The African 

Agribusiness 

Incubators 

Network 

supports the 

advancement 

of agriculture 

• Over 50 professionals and experts 

across Africa in agribusiness incubation 

• Over 120 associate consultants in 

incubation at national, regional and 

global level 

• Agribusiness incubation M&E 

system developed 

• Presence of online, virtual and on site 

incubation tools to support existing 

and emerging incubators 

• Produced a compendium of 

agribusiness technologies and 

innovations for commercialisation in 

Africa and Asia (UniBRAIN /AAIN 2015) 

About African Agribusiness 

Incubators Fund 

AAIN established the African Agribusiness 

Incubation Fund (AAIF), as a financial and 

technical support service for agribusiness 

incubation with the purpose of 

underwriting and de-risking agribusiness. 

The AAIF financing and investment is 

available to incubators, small scale 

incubator hubs, incubatees, students, 

SMEs, cooperatives or individuals with 

ideas worth spreading. It supports ideas 

generation, testing of innovations, and 

commercialising of technologies and 

innovations. Investments in agribusiness 

and in youth is considered to be high risk 

by lenders and financiers, thus AAIF 

addresses some of the key entry barriers 

by youth into agribusiness. 

AAIN engages in the de-risking process 

through mentorship and handholding while 

AAIF supports the building of successful 

‘agri-ventures’. AAIN has regional and 

liaison offices in Kenya, Rwanda, Mali, 

South Africa, Senegal and Benin. The fund 

is managed by a board, a technical 

committee, accounting and audit firm. 

The fund manager reports to the CEO 

who in turn reports to the AAIN board. 

Scope of operations 

The AAIN targets to establish the services 

of AAIF in all the 54 African countries 

alongside the incubators and in support 

of the agribusiness investment agenda 

• Fund/incubation design 

• Pre and post incubation financing 

have different risk profiles. This 

determines the design of the financing 

as well as the AAIF investment 

approach, design and also influences 

the incubation actions. 


Nii Noi Kwame Street, 

North Dzorwulu, Accra, Ghana 

+233 501 481 646 (Mobile) 

http://africaain.org

AGRICULTURE 

Engaging 

African youth 

in agriculture 

Agriculture 

Over the past decade, Africa recorded 

sustained and impressive economic 

growth rates. In 2014, growth rates 

averaged around 5% – almost double 

the global average. Agriculture remains 

a key sector in African economies, 

accounting for 70% of the employment and 

contributing to about 25% of the GDP in many 

countries. Despite Africa’s vast agricultural potential 

and these impressive economic growth figures, the 

continent has remained a net importer of food and 

non-food agricultural products in the last three 

decades. Progress towards improved food security in 

sub-Saharan Africa has been slow overall and 23.2% of 

the population is estimated to be undernourished. 

Other challenges facing Africa include rapid 

urbanisation, a large youth population and climate 

change. Although Africa is the least urbanised region 

of the world, with an urban population of 39%, it has 

the fastest urban growth rate of 4.5%. UN projections 

show that Africa will become 50% urban by 2035. 

At the same time, Africa has the youngest population 

in the world, with almost 200 million people aged 

between 15 and 24, and more than half of the 

population under 25 years old. On the other hand, the 

natural resources, biodiversity and ecosystems upon 

which the continent’s agriculture is reliant are being 

unsustainably exploited and degraded, while climate 

change poses a significant challenge to the crop, 

livestock, fisheries and forestry sectors. 

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is 

a historic commitment to tackle poverty and hunger 

while restoring and sustainably managing natural 

resources through an interconnected set of 

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In 2014, the 

African Union (AU) adopted the Malabo Declaration 

Engaging the African youth in 

agriculure will boost productivity 


AGRICULTURE 

Maria Helena Semedo espouses the 

need for investment in mechanising 

technologies to attract Africa’s youth 

to agriculture 

on Accelerated Agricultural Growth and 

Transformation for Shared Prosperity and Improved 

Livelihoods, the aspirations of which and priority 

areas are fully aligned to the SDGs. 

Food and agricultural systems feature prominently 

in the COP21 agreement that was reached in Paris in 

December 2015, paving the way for countries to 

identify their climate adaptation and mitigation 

responses. The recently concluded COP22 in 

Marrakech, Morocco provided a forum for focusing on 

actions to achieve the commitments of the landmark 

Paris Agreement. 

Potential for mechanisation 

and agribusiness 

The benefits of agricultural mechanisation include 

reducing drudgery, improving the timeliness of 

agricultural operations, and making agriculture more 

resilient to increasingly extreme and unpredictable 

climatic events. Mechanisation can also improve 

post-harvest, processing and marketing operations, 

which add value to primary products, reduce food 

losses, and improve food safety and quality. Moreover, 

mechanisation can create entrepreneurial 

opportunities in rural areas such as hire services, 

while also providing opportunities for energy 

generation and infrastructure improvement. 

Through their forward and backward linkages, 

agribusinesses produce multiplier effects, generating 

demand for agricultural products and associated 

inputs and services, creating on- and off-farm 

employment, enhancing incomes and contributing to 

value addition and increased public sector revenues. 

The development of agribusiness can facilitate access 

of smallholders to markets, finance and technical 

assistance, promoting their inclusion into more 

modern and efficient value chains. 

Agricultural mechanisation and agribusiness 

development in Africa lags significantly behind other 

developing regions. According to Food and Agriculture 

Organization (FAO) data, Africa’s average of 13 

tractors/100km² of arable land is much lower than the 

global average (200/100km²) and the average for other 

developing regions such as South Asia (129/100km²). 

Land preparation in Africa is being carried out using 

draft animals and tractors on only 30% of the area 

cultivated. With regard to agribusiness, despite the 

growing international demand for higher-value 

processed products, Africa is yet to make significant 

progress toward adding value to her primary 

agricultural commodities. Some estimates show that 

African countries contribute less than 10% to global 

value addition, while Africa’s international trade is 

dominated by primary commodity exports, which 

represent almost 60% of total export value. 

The low level of mechanisation across the agrifood 

value chain and low levels of agribusiness 

development make agriculture unattractive to Africa’s 

youth, while also limiting opportunities for income 

generation and employment. 

Arne Hoel / World Bank 


AGRICULTURE 

As such they are some of the contributory 

factors to emigration – particularly of youth 

– from rural areas in search of alternative 

livelihoods and opportunities in urban areas 

and foreign countries. 

The avenues for addressing youth 

unemployment in Africa are closely interlinked 

to those for transforming the agriculture and 

food systems in order to sustainably feed the 

rapidly growing and urbanising population. 

As many young Africans 

find traditional farming 

unattractive, the 

prospects are higher 

for involving them 

in profitable 

agro-enterprises 

and more modern, 

mechanised agrifood 

systems where they can 

apply their education, 

entrepreneurial potential, 

technological knowledge 

(including of ICTs) and 

innovativeness. 

What needs to be 

done – examples 

of FAO support 

If the youths are to play a role in enabling 

Africa to meet the future food and nutrition 

needs of its population, investments will be 

needed to address the numerous constraints 

limiting their participation in agricultural and 

food systems. Among others, these constraints 

include unsupportive policy and regulatory 

environments, inadequate skills development 

and educational opportunities, and limited 

access to land, information, technologies 

and financial services. 

It is against this background that FAO and 

the African Union Commission (AUC) are 

partnering in projects to promote sustainable 

agricultural mechanisation and agribusiness 

development. In one project, capacity 

development needs of government officials 

in formulating sustainable agricultural 

mechanisation strategies and integrating 

agricultural mechanisation in policy 

frameworks are being ascertained. In addition, 

successful business models for engaging youth, 

such as agricultural mechanisation hubs in 

Kenya and Hello Tractor in Nigeria, are being 

documented for replication and scaling up. 

To date, four sub-regional studies have 

been undertaken. 

Another project is supporting the 

establishment of a continental agribusiness 

platform, the development of a regulatory 

framework for agribusiness partnerships and 

building the capacity of the domestic private 

FAO and the AUC are 

partnering to promote 

sustainable agricultural 

mechanisation 

sector and agribusiness support organisations, 

including agribusiness incubators, targeting 

mainly youth and women. In collaboration with 

the African Agribusiness Incubation Network 

(AAIN), selected agribusiness incubators in 

Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Mali, Nigeria, Rwanda 

and Zambia have been assessed with a view of 

preparing a capacity development programme. 

In parallel, alternative capacity development 

approaches, such as the Junior Farmer Field 

and Life Schools (JFFLS), have been applied in 

many countries in sub-Saharan Africa to 

address the needs of rural youth who might 

not have the academic background required to 

access incubators but are already engaged in, 

or are interested in engaging in, the 

agricultural sector. 

FAO also supported 

the AU First Five Year 

Priority Programme on 

Employment, Poverty 

Eradication and Inclusive 

Development. The 

programme placed 

emphasis on enhancing 

regional cooperation for 

upscaling successful 

approaches for decent 

women and youth employment in agriculture 

and agribusiness, and ensuring policy and 

programmatic coherence between social 

protection interventions and agricultural 

productivity. 

Conclusions and looking to the future 

The inclusive transformation of Africa’s 

agricultural sector is key to stimulating 

broad-based economic growth, absorbing 

millions of young people entering the labour 

market and attaining the SDGs. The Malabo 

Declaration and the SDGs have served to 

galvanise efforts in various fronts aimed at 

fostering Africa’s economic transformation, 

especially the development of inclusive and 

efficient agricultural and food systems and 

the promotion of full, productive employment 

and decent work for all. 

Mechanisation along the entire agrifood 

value chain and agribusiness development are 

an important vehicle for making agriculture 

more dynamic, profitable, competitive and 

appealing for youths. Facing the growing 

challenges of youth employment, urbanisation 

and migration, African governments will need 

to formulate and systematically implement 

policies and programmes that make the 

necessary investments to maximise 

opportunities for young people, strengthen 

their capacities, and facilitate access to 

productive resources. FAO stands ready to 

support these efforts.• 


AGRICULTURE 

AGRICULTURE 

IN NUMBERS 

5% 

economic growth in 

Africa in 2014 - almost 

double the global 

average 

70% 

of employment in 

Africa comes from 

agriculture 

25% 

of the African GDP is 

produced by people 

working in agriculture 

13 

tractors per 100km2 

across 

the continent - much 

lower than the global 

average of 200 

39% 

of the African 

population is 

urbansied. This is 

expected to raise to 

Technological advances have 

made the mechanisation of 

agriculture possible 

Subman/Getty images 

50% 

by 2035 taking into 

account that Africa has 

the world’s fastest 

urbanisation rate of 

$4.5% 


British American Tobacco Nigeria Foundation 

Empowering Nigeria for 

a sustainable future 

Our history 

Since our inception in 2002 we have 

focused on implementing projects that 

aim to reduce poverty and enable 

communities enjoy an improved standard 

of living. Our projects include potable 

water supply, environmental protection, 

conservation/protection, vocational skills 

acquisition and agricultural development. 

In 2013, we narrowed our focus to 

sustainable agriculture, with an emphasis 

on supporting rural smallholder farmers 

to make the transition from subsistence 

farming to commercial agriculture and 

earn their livelihood through best 

agricultural practices that are more 

productive, environmentally-friendly and 

sustainable in the long term. 

Who we support 

•Agricultural cooperatives 

•Agro-enterprise associations 

•Community-based farmers’ organizations 

How we support them 

•Establishing model agricultural 

enterprises 

•Providing seed funding for agricultural 

inputs and farming related expenses 

•Building capacity through training and 

mentoring 

•Introducing new agricultural techniques 

and technologies 

•Assisting with market access and 

information 

Our vision 

A Nigeria in which poverty has been 

significantly reduced in rural communities. 

Our mission 

To focus on projects that reduce poverty 

and make sustainable positive impacts on 

our communities. 

Our programme strategy 

Sustainable agriculture in rural communities. 

In our first ten years we established over 

150 projects in communities across 

Nigeria: 

BREAKDOWN BY GEO POLITICAL ZONE 

South West 55 

South East 15 

South South 11 

North West 23 

North East 12 

North Central 40 

FCT 1 

TOTAL 157 

BREAKDOWN BY PROJECT 

Agricultural development 69 

Water supply 64 

Environmental protection 13 

Vocational skills development 11 

TOTAL 157

British American Tobacco Nigeria Foundation 

Established BATNF 

model maize farm at 

Bizara Community, 

Kaduna State. 

Beneficiaries of the BATNF cassava processing cottage Industry at 

Okolemo Community, Ogun State. 

Present day: Model enterprise farms 

We have supported the establishment of 16 model enterprise 

farms that are designed to be financially viable and sustainable. 

The model farms provide each smallholder farmer with one 

hectare of land on which to gain practical experience in large 

scale farming and value addition. 

FACTS AND FIGURES 

of model farms we 

have established since 2013. 

16Number 

of 

smallholder 

500+Number 

farmers across 

the country who have directly 

benefitted from our model farms 

projects. 

28,000+ 

Number of farmers who have 

benefitted, when indirect beneficiaries 

are included. Our smallholder farmers 

are trained to share commercial farming 

skills they acquire with other farmers in 

their communities. 

35 

Number of water projects 

that support agricultural 

projects such as agro processing. 

Promoting agricultural enterprise 

Through our enterprise development 

strategy, we encourage a business mindset 

in subsistence farmers and support them to 

run their farms as a commercial enterprise. 

We have established model enterprise 

farms cultivating cassava, maize, rice and 

vegetables; and have also funded water 

projects to support farming activities and 

provide potable water for the communities. 

How our enterprise development 

strategy works: 

•We fund the establishment of 

model enterprise farms to transfer 

technical skills to smallholder 

farmers 

•We partner with third-party 

organisations with the capacity to 

provide technical assistance to 

farming communities 

•We work with agricultural 

cooperatives or, where none exist, 

organise the smallholder farmers 

into groups to work on the model 

farms 

•The farmers are introduced to 

the concept of agricultural value 

chains and the various stages 

required to get their produce from 

the farm to the consumer 

•We provide seed funding to the 

cooperatives, which the 

co-operative members can access 

as loans to cover the cost of 

inputs, land preparation and 

technical assistance 

•Each farmer cultivates at least 

one hectare of land as part of the 

shift in mindset from subsistence 

farming to commercial farming 

•The third party organisations we 

work with support the 

cooperatives with technical 

assistance market access and links 

for distribution

AGRICULTURE 

One of the most important gains was the 

increased use of emerging technologies 

beyond the traditional use of mobile 

phones in agriculture, including precision 

agriculture, sensors, satellites and drones. 

For example, FieldLook is using 

satellite images in the Gezira irrigation scheme in Sudan 

to provide information about crop growth, humidity, and 

nutrient needs of plants. This is then conveyed to farmers 

using mobile phones. 

In Nigeria drones are being used to map the potential 

for expanding rice cultivation. The UK-based GrowMoreX 

Consultancy Company, for example, operates drone-based 

farming services. It conducted a survey of 3,000 hectares 

of land suitable for irrigated rice farming in New Bussa, 

Niger State. The area is 700km away from the capital 

Abuja. It has limited access to roads, electricity, clean 

water and other amenities. 

Innovation gains in 2016 are just one aspect that 

was captured in a new study released by the Alliance 

for Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) this year. The 

2016 Africa Agriculture Status Report also noted that 

African agriculture is finally taking root, showing how 

long-term policy commitments and funding were key 

to the sector’s growth. 

The gains reported in 2016 went hand in hand 

with overall growth in Africa over the last two decades. 

According to the AGRA report, “GDP per capita increased 

in Africa from an annual average of $987 in 1995-2003, 

to $1,154 in 2003-2008, and even higher to $1,289 

on 2008-2014.” 

Many sectors such as communication, transportation, 

wholesale and construction contributed to the growth. 

But more remarkably, agricultural value addition grew by 

“5.2% in 2000-2014 compared to less than 3% (in) previous 

decades”. Manufacturing’s share of total value addition 

grew, while agriculture’s did not. 

These trends are in line with historical patterns in Asia 

and other regions where productivity in agriculture was a 

key driver of long-term economic transformation. This 

shows that agriculture is more than just producing food. 

It is a driver for overall economic growth. 

There have been some clear “wins” worth highlighting 

from the past year. 

Free trade area 

2016 was a critical year in Africa’s negotiations to create a 

Continental Free Trade Area. This is scheduled to be 

finalised in 2017. The free trade area is expected to 

significantly expand Africa’s trade in agricultural 

products by building on current growth in the sector. 

The talks are building on the Tripartite Free Trade 

Area. This is a proposed African free trade agreement 

between the Common Market for Eastern and Southern 

Africa (COMESA), Southern African Development 

Community (SADC) and East African Community (EAC). 

It has created a market of more than 620 million people 

in 26 countries valued at $1.5 trillion. 

The Continental Free Trade Area will cover more than 

a billion people in 54 countries with a combined GDP of 

Last year was a big one for agriculture 

in Africa with some notable “wins” 

across the continent, writes 

Professor Calestous Juma 

Important 

wins were 

notched up 

for African 

agriculture 

in 2016 

over $3.5 trillion. It is also expected to create 

opportunities for trade in agricultural machinery and 

associated services. 

Overcoming ecological hurdles 

In many parts of Africa agriculture has been pursued 

at the expense of the environment. This has largely been 

due to the lack of training in new methods that take the 

environment into consideration. Such skills would reduce 

agriculture’s ecological footprint and make it more 

resilient to climate change. 

An example of promoting ecological food production 

is an effort by Somalia to rebuild fisheries after decades 

of conflict. The initiative, supported by Norway and the 

FAO, includes new methods of drying and storing fish, 

which would reduce post-harvest losses. 

To begin to address this, a programme was launched in 

which more than 200 young men and women will receive 

training and mentoring support in the handling and 

processing of fish and fish products. 

“Given the importance of fisheries and aquaculture in 

food security in Africa, other countries…can draw on the 

experiences of Somalia to develop national sectorial 

development plans and build partnerships to improve the 

sustainable intensification of their fisheries sector,” a 

report from the Food and Agriculture Organisation notes. 


AGRICULTURE 

JEKESAI NJIKIZANA/AFP/Getty Images 

A drone used to scout a plot of a heat-tolerant 

hybrid maize growing at the Chiredzi 

Research Station Zimbabwe 

Infrastructural wins 

The AGRA report also highlighted the importance 

of investment in rural infrastructure – particularly 

transportation, energy, telecommunications and 

irrigation. It says a “10% decrease in rural transport 

cost can generate a 25% increase in the quantity of food 

traded.” This year in Kenya’s Rift Valley, rural roads were 

revamped. This reduced the cost of transporting food. 

Transportation is only one aspect of infrastructure. 

Reliable energy is also key for the creation and growth 

of agro-industries in rural and urban areas. More 

importantly, the use of renewable energy can help 

African countries generate energy more sustainably. 

A good example is the launch of East Africa’s largest solar 

plant in Soroti, Uganda. 

Similarly, irrigation is essential for crop 

production. Only about 4% per of African agriculture 

is irrigated, whereas the share is 45% in Asia and 18% 

for global agriculture. 

African countries are increasingly using solar power 

for irrigation. In 2016, for example, Rwanda launched a $13 

million solar-powered irrigation scheme in collaboration 

with the Japan International Cooperation Agency. Another 

key highlight of the 2016 AGRA report is the importance of 

including nutrition in overall agricultural strategies. 

Nourishing people is just as important as feeding them. In 

2016 Ghana launched a new project aimed at improving 

maternal and child nutrition by encouraging the 

consumption of milk. In addition to improving nutrition, 

the project seeks to support income generation along the 

dairy value chain. 

Complex agricultural economies 

Leaders need to upgrade their capacity to govern 

increasingly complex agricultural economies if they’re 

to sustain the gains seen and reported in 2016. Modern 

agriculture involves decisions on topics such as the 

impact of climate change, nutrition, improved seed and 

agricultural inputs, emerging technologies, infrastructure, 

research and extension and financing. 

Countries around the world have responded to the 

need for up-to-date information by creating offices of 

science and technology advice to complement the work of 

other presidential advisers. African presidents and prime 

ministers need to have similar knowledge support offices. 

Otherwise they risk making decisions that are not 

supported by the best possible available advice. • 

Calestous Juma, Professor at Harvard Kennedy School 

@calestous 


Philip Morris Perspective 

Eliminating food insecurity 

in tobacco growing countries 

Assuring farming communities’ food security alongside 

cash crop production is of vital importance in Africa 

Among the hardest hit countries is 

Malawi, where about 40% of the 

population faces food insecurity following 

El Niño-induced drought, which has left 

the primarily agricultural country with 

failed harvests, leading to the second year 

of deficit in maize production. 

Economic conditions remain 

touch-and-go with high inflation, high food 

prices and limited opportunity to earn an 

income. According to the World Food 

Program, some 6.7 million people are now 

need urgent food or cash support to tide 

them over to the next harvest, expected in 

March 2017. 

These challenging conditions make it 

imperative for a company like Philip Morris, 

which sources a large quantity of its 

tobacco in Africa to provide assistance for 

other crops grown on tobacco farms. This 

helps farmers to become self-sufficient in 

food production for their family and those 

working on their farms, but also provide an 

additional source of income as surplus can 

be sold. 

PMI’s suppliers have worked hard to 

ensure a system where farmers grow a 

minimum of 2kgs of food for every 1kg of 

tobacco they produce. As a result, more 

than 83,000 tons of maize have been 

produced by 26,000 farmers, supported by 

PMI’s suppliers in Malawi. 

In 2015, approximately 180,000 tobacco 

farmers in Mozambique, Malawi and 

Tanzania grew food crops for household 

consumption, and more than 43,000 grew 

other non-tobacco cash crops, ranging 

from maize to nuts, vegetables and grains. 

Worldwide, nearly 320,000 (71%) 

tobacco farmers in PMI’s and/or our leaf 

suppliers’ supply chain grew food for 

household consumption and approximately 

160,000 (35.6%) grew other non-tobacco 

cash crops. 

We purchase in excess of 400,000 

metric tons of packed tobacco leaf each 

year from suppliers and farmers in more 

than 30 countries. We process that leaf 

into tobacco products in 53 manufacturing 

facilities employing more than 50,000 

people around the world. We share 

common interests with the communities 

where our tobacco leaf is farmed and 

processed. We work to ensure the 

efficiency and low environmental impact of 

our operations, while providing safe, 

secure and sustainable livelihoods for our 

supplier farmers and their communities 

Helping farmers to 

become self-sufficient 

in food production 

for their family and 

those working on their 

farms, but also provide 

additional income 

through our Good Agricultural Practices 

program (GAP) and Our Contributions 

program. We are committed to promoting 

good agricultural practices that support 

the sustainability of crops and help the 

communities and environment where our 

tobacco is grown to thrive. 

For more information, go to http://www. 

pmi.com/eng/sustainability/Pages/ 

sustainability.aspx 

There are 180,000 tobacco farmers in 

Mozambique, Malawi and Tanzania

FOREWORD 

HE Dr Mustapha 

Sidiki Kaloko 

Commissioner for Social Affairs 


The policy framework for Africa 

Health Strategy (AHS) 2016–2030 

is premised on a number of 

continental and global health 

policy commitments and 

instruments. Chief among these 

are Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want and 2030 

Agenda for Sustainable Development. Other 

policy frameworks include declarations aimed 

at combatting AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria in 

Africa by 2030. 

Guiding member states 

AHS 2016–2030 outlines the key policy 

frameworks, accountability mechanisms and 

roles and responsibilities in relation to its 

implementation. Given its nature – as a 

continental instrument aimed at guiding 

member states – bearing in mind the main 

responsibility for its implementation. 

Accordingly, the lead role for coordinating and 

overseeing the AHS 2016–2030 rests with the 

member states, with facilitation, coordination 

and support by the AU organs, RECs, UN 

agencies and other partners. 

Its predecessor, AHS 2007–2015, had 

provided strategic direction to Africa’s efforts 

in creating better health for all and had 

recognised that Africa had previously 

established health goals in addition to the 

Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) to 

which it has committed. It explored challenges 

and opportunities related to efforts that can 

decrease the continent’s burden of disease, 

strengthen its health systems and enhance 

human capital by improving health. The AHS 

2016–2030 is similar to some extent in that it 

also seeks to provide strategic direction to 

Africa’s efforts in creating better performing 

health sectors, recognises existing continental 

commitments and addresses key challenges to 

reducing the continent’s burden 

of disease, while also drawing 

on lessons learned and existing 

opportunities. Other policy 

frameworks include the Sexual 

and Reproductive Health and 

Rights, Continental Policy 

Frame work and its extended 

Maputo Plan of Action 

(2016–2030), the Pharmaceutical 

Manufacturing Plan for Africa (PMPA) 

and the Africa Regional Nutrition 

Strategy (ARNS) 2015–2025. 

Africa remains the continent most heavily 

affected by malaria, with particularly severe 

effects on maternal and child health and 

morbidity. While malaria was eradicated from 

most places on the globe, it remains a major 

killer in Africa. With the science and medical 

advancements available to eliminate this 

disease, this is unacceptable. Children under 

five years and pregnant women are the most 

vulnerable populations who bear an outsized 

burden of this disease’s deadly toll. To address 

malaria there is need to ensure that sufficient 

resources are guaranteed to mount an effective 

response. There were exponential increases in 

funding and implementation for malaria control 

programmes over the past decade, but there is 

still much more that needs to be done. 

Another policy framework 

Addis Ababa Declaration on Population and 

Development beyond 2014 puts emphasis 

on population and development has urged the 

African Union to propose ‘Harnessing 

Demographic Dividend Through Investments in 

the Youth’, as the AU’s theme for 2017. 

To that end, a road map on Harnessing the 

Demographic Dividend through Investments in 

Youth will be launched at the January Summit. • 

With the 

science and 

medical 

advancements 

available to 

eliminate this 

disease, this is 

unacceptable 


HEALTH & EDUCATION 

Ending the 

epidemic 

HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis (TB) and malaria have long plagued 

the African continent, despite all three diseases being 

preventable and treatable, writes Ruth Henwood Mathys. 

Health & Education 

This triple burden of disease 

typically affects people in their 

most productive years, 

impacting on their ability to 

generate an income and 

contribute to country’s 

economic growth. The socioeconomic impact 

is felt at both the household and country level, 

depriving households of an income and 

stunting gross domestic product (GDP) 

growth. According to the Population Reference 

Bureau, Malaria alone is said to slow economic 

growth by up to 1.3% in Africa. In recognition 

of both the cost at an individual level, as well 

as to that of the continent, African Union (AU) 

member states signed the Abuja Declaration to 

end HIV and TB and eliminate Malaria in Africa 

by 2030. The last 15 years have seen in-roads 

being made towards this ambitious target. The 

percentage of new malaria cases in Africa fell 

by 42% between 2000 and 2015, while 

according to the 2015 WHO World Malaria 

Report, mortality rates declined by 66% during 

this same period. In addition to this, the 

number of new TB cases dropped from 350 per 

100,000 population per year to 270 between 

2000 and 2015 according to the 2016 WHO 

Global TB report. The greatest gains in global 

antiretroviral therapy (ART) coverage were 

seen in eastern and southern Africa, where 

coverage increased from 24% in 2010 to 54% in 

2015, reaching a total of 10.3 million people. 

According to UNAIDS, Botswana, Eritrea, 

Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda, South 

Africa, Swaziland, Uganda, the United Republic 

of Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe all 

increased treatment coverage by more than 

25% between 2010 and 2015. 

Far reaching consequences 

Despite these commendable improvements, the 

effects of HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria 

in Africa continue to have far-reaching health, 

social and economic consequences. The 

infectious nature of these diseases means that 

any sense of complacency could lead to a surge 

in new infections, a consequence the continent 

cannot afford. In a context of declining 

donor-funding African governments will need 

to invest more in public health, and 

strategically so to fill the gap. Most recently, in 

a renewed pledge to sustain and build upon 

the gains made in eliminating AIDS, TB 

and malaria, 

AU member states signed the 

Catalytic Framework to End 

AIDS and TB and Eliminate 

Malaria by 2030. The 

Catalytic Framework is 

a blueprint to the 

Abuja 

Declaration, 

and offers a 

business model 

for governments to invest for impact in three 

strategic investment areas: 

•Health systems strengthening 

•Generation and use of evidence for policy and 

programme interventions 

•Advocacy and capacity building (African 

Union Foundation, 2016). 

Six core functions 

Any investments in strengthening the health 

system should be channelled into the six core 

functions of health systems: Service delivery, 


HEALTH & EDUCATION 

iStock/ AkilRolle 

ANC has been endorsed 

by WHO as the most 

effective way to 

tackle HIV, TB and 

malaria in pregnant 

women and infants 

Health workforce, Information, Medical 

products, vaccines and technologies, Financing 

and Leadership and governance. 

Patient monitoring systems are an integral 

part of quality HIV care as they track key 

clinical outcomes and retention 

in HIV care of patients. This 

information is essential to 

monitor HIV treatment 

programme outcomes and to 

track progress towards 

achieving public health goals 

such as the elimination of 

malaria by 2030. While the 

establishment and maintenance 

of patient monitoring systems 

require considerable investment 

in infrastructure and human 

resources, they have the 

potential to maximise the health 

benefits of HIV services at a population level. 

Further, patient monitoring systems offer a 

valuable source of information, which can be 

used to develop evidence-based public health 

policies and programmes. Investment in this 

sector allows governments to strengthen their 

health system while generating information to 

inform evidence-based health programmes. 

10.3mn 

people across the continent 

received antiretroviral 

treatment in 2015 

13% 

slowing of economic growth 

in Africa owing to malaria 

Integration of antenatal care 

A significant number can be reached in 

antenatal care, which sees 70% coverage in 

sub-Saharan Africa. The integration of 

antenatal care (ANC) has been endorsed by the 

World Health Organization as the most 

effective way to tackle HIV, TB and malaria in 

pregnant women and infants. There is a 

reduction in child mortality of 32% when 

intermittent preventive therapy in pregnancy 

(IPTp) was integrated into antenatal care and 

18% with the integration of bed nets into 

antennal care. The inclusion of TB screening 

and diagnosis into antenatal care could lead to 

the detection and treatment of an extra 167,200 

TB cases globally and reduce untreated TB 

deaths in pregnancy by 40%. Lessons from past 

public health initiatives indicate that weak 

health systems, insufficient human resources 

and poor laboratory infrastructure act as 

barriers to service provision. 

The integrated care approach relies on 

human resources, universal access to drugs, 

health insurance, diagnostics, and simplified 

laboratory tools, increased and sustained 

investment in these areas are imperative if 

Africa is to achieve the 2030 target. • 


A PEACEFUL AND SECURE AFRICA 

US Army Africa 

CASE STUDY: 

BOKO HARAM 

Targeting Islamic 

extremist group Boko 

Haram, the Multinational 

Joint Task Force (MNJTF) 

– an AU-backed initiative – 

combines military tactics 

with initiatives targeting 

terrorism’s foundations. 

The force is currently 

composed of troops from 

Nigeria, Benin, Niger, Chad 

and Cameroon, each based 

in their respective 

territories, but coordinated 

from N’Djamena, Chad. 

The mission undertakes 

coordinated patrols and 

border surveillance, and 

is supported by central 

intelligence collection and 

information sharing. Its 

aim is to secure the 

environment for civilians 

while ensuring 

humanitarian assistance 

reaches the affected areas. 

In January 2015 the PSC 

asked the UN to extend 

similar support to the 

MNJTF as it has to 

AMISOM. The UN Security 

Council created a trust 

fund for the group and 

granting official 

authorisation for its 

cross-border work. Since 

this decision, troop 

numbers have increased to 

10,000 and in 2016 the 

MNJTF received additional 

resources purchased by 

UK-donated funds. Military 

efforts are complemented 

by activities like restricting 

the proliferation of small 

weapons, finding abducted 

persons and reintegrating 

former militants. 

Rachel Cummings looks at the African Union’s role in fighting 

terrorism, how to tackle extremism and examines potential 

threats to efforts to protect the continent’s citizens 

AU counter 

terrorism 

initiatives 

Between 1970 and 2013 almost 

10,000 terrorist atrocities 

took place in sub-Saharan 

Africa alone. From the Lord’s 

Resistance Army in Central 

Africa to Boko Haram in the 

West and radical religious movements 

across the North, no region has remained 

untouched by this wave of violence. 

Such terrorists have little respect for 

borders, meaning counter measures must 

also be transcontinental. In recent years, 

the African Union has become the natural 

home for interstate anti-terrorist efforts. 

The organisation first took action in 

response to devastating attacks on the 

Kenyan and Tanzanian US embassies 

in 1998. A stronger global emphasis 

on countering extreme violence and 

radicalisation post-September 11 

Attacks renewed these efforts and 

they continue today. 

The African Union now coordinates 

work to reduce the threat of terrorist 

violence right across the continent. 

The African Union’s 

counter-terrorism framework 

The 1999 OAU Convention on the 

Prevention and Combating of Terrorism 

remains a seminal document in 

cross-continental efforts to collectively 

respond to terror. 

Entering into force in 2002, to date, 41 

member states have ratified this 

instrument, which outlines the legislative, 

judicial and military frameworks required 

to root out those suspected of plotting or 

perpetrating violence against civilians. 

The Convention describes state 

cooperation on key anti-terror issues. 

Crucially, it also provides a model law that 

can be incorporated into national 

legislation to ensure both robust legal 

protections within each country and 

sufficient harmonisation between states 

for effective cross-border working. 

The 2004 Protocol to the Convention 

also created two important institutions: 

The African Centre for Study and Research 

on Terrorism (ACSRT) and the office of 

Special Representative for 

Counter-Terrorism Cooperation. 

The African Centre for Study 

and Research on Terrorism 

ACSRT is an arm of African Union’s 

counter-terrorism efforts. It aims to better 

understand the terrorist threat to 

effectively inform and evaluate measures 

targeting 

their elimination. 

Staff members at the Centre collate 

information about terrorist groups, acts 

and counter-measures to create a central 

hub of expertise on the topic. They also 

undertake original research to better 

inform future efforts and promote the 

academic understanding of terrorist 

threats in Africa. 

Using both collated data and new 

research, ACSRT experts provide technical 

support to states wishing to strengthen 

their own counter terrorism measures. 



Pic caption 

Ugandan soldiers serving with the African 

Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) 

AMISOM/FLIKR/ AU-UN IST PHOTO / STUART PRICE 

CASE STUDY: AL-SHABAAB 

The threat posed to Somali and East 

African citizens by al-Shabaab has 

become increasingly stark. 

The group garnered worldwide 

attention in 2012 after aligning itself 

to the global al-Qaeda movement. 

AMISOM was established in 2007 

and is authorised by the UN Security 

Council. Experts laud the mission for 

its success in pushing back 

al-Shabaab militants, recapturing 

territory claimed by the group and 

regaining major cities. It is made up 

of troops from both surrounding and 

distant countries, including Uganda, 

Kenya, Ethiopia, Djibouti, Burundi 

and Sierra Leone. 

Military activities are 

complemented by civilian measures 

aimed at dealing with the 

consequences of terror and its 

underlying causes. 

AMISOM also has a maritime 

component that ensures the safety 

and security of vessels in 

international waters and coordinates 

collective efforts to secure the coast 

line of Mogadishu. 



Special Representative for 

Counter-Terrorism Cooperation 

The ACSRT is led by the Special Representative 

for Counter-Terrorism Cooperation, the AU’s 

leading official for anti-terrorism measures. 

This position brings together the technical 

expertise of ACSRT with the political profile 

needed to advocate for effective counter terror 

reforms. The Special Representative works in 

conjunction with national leads from each 

member state to disseminate best practice, 

scrutinise activities and support governments 

at risk of terrorist attacks, and collaborates 

closely with the AU’s Peace and Security Council 

(PSC), the AU Commission and Regional 

Economic Communities. 

Lieutenant Colonel Larry Gbevlo-Lartey is 

the current incumbent, and, as the ex-National 

Security Coordinator for Ghana and Director of 

Programs at the Centre for Conflict Resolution, 

brings extensive, hands-on counter-terrorism 

experience to the role. He has called for more 

preventative measures to reduce terrorist 

attacks and research on the tools used by 

terrorists to indoctrinate their members. 

Gbevlo-Lartey has also partnered with Kofi 

Annan International Peacekeeping Training 

Centre (KAIPTC) to coordinate research 

activities and host workshops on the causes of 

violent extremism in local communities. 

AU Peace and Security Council 

The Special Representative and ACSRT aim to 

lessen the threat of terrorism long-term. Both 

work under the auspices of the African Union 

Commission’s PSC – a standing organ of the AU. 

This body also coordinates direct military 

responses to terrorist activity as part of its 

wider mandate on African conflict and crisis. 

The PSC has a long history of tackling violent 

threats across the continent and has developed 

a comprehensive African Peace and Security 

Architecture (APSA) to do so. This includes the 

African Standby Force (ASF), which can 

be mobilised quickly in response to 

threats and longer-term missions 

targeting particular regional conflicts. 

Such missions include the African 

Union-led Regional Cooperation Initiative 

for the Elimination of the Lord’s 

Resistance Army (RCI-LRA) and the 

long-standing African Union Mission in 

Somalia (AMISOM). 

Addressing root causes 

The future of AU counter-terror efforts is 

likely to combine existing long-term 

preventative measures with strategic use 

of military power and a renewed focus on 

The Special Representative of the Chairperson of the African Union 

Commission (SRCC) for Somalia, Ambassador Francisco Caetano Madeira 

41 

The number of member 

states that have ratified 

the 1999 OAU Convention 

on the Prevention and 

Combating of Terrorism 

to date. 

Cohesive, international efforts 

coordinated by the AU are the 

only effective way to fight 

terrorism in Africa. 

the conditions that enable terrorism to flourish. 

Agenda 2063 – the AU’s 50-year vision – will 

guide much of the organisation’s future work. 

While terrorism is not explicitly addressed in 

the document, it does call for a peaceful and 

secure Africa, suggesting support for 

counter-extremist measures. Doing so will 

require a commitment from states to build 

anti-terror legislation into national law and 

contribute to international civilian protection 

initiatives. Member nations must also eliminate 

the legislative loop holes around illicit financing 

and arms sales that make it easier for terrorist 

groups to function. 

The AU’s counter terrorist activities 

are much needed as an interface between 

national or regional anti-terror approaches 

and global ones. It has the potential to 

coordinate a comprehensive response to this 

threat right across the continent while liaising 

with other multilateral institutions, such as the 

EU, ASEAN, and UN. 

As the former Special Representative for 

Counter Terrorism Cooperation, Ambassador 

Francisco Madeira, argued: “These threats 

present similar characteristics and we suffer 

from similar vulnerabilities. Each individual 

state alone will not be able to fight this scourge.” 

Cohesive, international 

efforts coordinated by the 

AU are the only effective 

way to fight terrorism in 

Africa. Eradicating this 

threat is a duty we owe to 

citizens right across the 

continent. Let us lose no 

time in doing so. • 

AMISOM Photo / Ilyas Ahmed 


The leading source of analysis, opinion 

and comment on the global agenda 

World leaders have agreed to keep global 

temperature rise this century below 

2 ° C 

Are G7 members sticking to 

this commitment? 

Find out at 

G7G20.com 

Published by 

@g7_g20 

linkedin.com/company/g7g20 

In partnership with 

G7 Research Group 

G20 Research Group

AFRICA AND THE WORLD 

Named as Time magazine’s Person of the Year 2016, 

Witney Schneidman examines how President Donald 

Trump’s US election win will impact Africa 

A view from Washington 

President 

Trump’s 

Africa Policy 

The election of President 

Donald Trump raises 

immediate questions for US 

policy toward Africa. For the 

last three US administrations 

– Clinton, Bush, Obama – there 

has been an important measure of continuity 

predicated on an enduring bipartisan 

consensus in Congress. 

This bipartisan consensus led to the 

passage in 2000 of the African Growth and 

Opportunity Act (AGOA), and its recent 

extension through 2025. Other important 

initiatives include the President’s Emergency 

Program for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), and the 

creation of the Millennium Challenge 

Corporation, Feed the Future and Power 

Africa, all of which are supported through 

legislation and by the US private sector. 

Past administrations and Africa 

The reality is that Presidents Clinton and 

Bush had little contact with Africa prior to 

assuming office. President Obama, who had 

more personal experience with the continent 

than any previous US president, did not 

develop a comprehensive Africa strategy 

until the end of his first term. 

The new Trump administration believes 

that it has a mandate to restore American 

jobs that have been lost to foreign trade and 

American companies manufacturing 

overseas. In the African context, this could 

lead to a review of AGOA, which provides 

tariff-free access for 6,400 goods to enter 

the US market. Over the last decade, many 

African governments have signed Economic 

Partnership Agreements that provide 

preferential access to EU nations, to the 

detriment of US companies and products. 

The Trump administration could be expected 

to pursue strategies to level the playing field 

when it comes to the US commercial 

engagement in Africa. 

Combatting terror 

Counter-terrorism will be a priority for 

the Trump administration. While the US 

has been an active partner working with 

governments across the continent, a 

thorough review of these relationships 

and programmes should be anticipated. 

During the presidential campaign, Mr 

Trump said that he wanted to keep NATO but 



iStock/ Bastiaan Slabbers 

he criticised those members who have not met 

the group’s target of spending 2% of GDP on 

defence. In fact, only five of the 28 members 

will achieve that target. 

Environmentally aware 

Climate change, given its global importance, 

inevitably will be a priority for the Trump 

administration. Prior to assuming office, Mr 

Donald Trump sent mixed signals on how he 

will approach the issue. During the campaign, 

he referred to climate change as a hoax, but 

during the transition acknowledged to the New 

York Times “some connectivity” between 

human activity and climate change. Mr Trump 

also said that he has an “open mind” to 

continued US involvement in the Paris climate 

accord after previously pledging to withdraw 

from the agreement signed by 196 nations. 

President Trump appointed Scott Pruitt, 

Oklahoma’s Attorney General, to head the 

Environmental Protection Agency. 

How the Trump administration approaches 

climate change matters to Africa, especially in 

the message that the US intends to sends. For 

one, the Paris accord stipulates that wealthy 

countries will increase climate financing for 

developing nations by $100 billion by 2020. For a 

region that is dependent on rain to irrigate an 

estimated 95% of its agricultural productivity, 

this financing and the US commitment to it is 

vital to mitigate the negative impact of climate 

change on the continent. 

Economic growth 

Finally, to help the President achieve 

his most important objectives, Mr Trump 

announced the formation of the President’s 

Strategic and Policy Forum. This group is made 

up of 16 CEOs, many of whom lead companies 

that are active in Africa. 

Working through ambassadors and 

embassies in Washington and African capitals 

will be important in encouraging strong 

ongoing ties between the US and Africa. 

Engaging members of the US Congress will be 

beneficial. After all, it was only 18 months ago 

that more than 90 Senators and 400 members 

of the House voted to extend AGOA. There is no 

substitute, however, for African leaders directly 

engaging the new president and his most senior 

advisers and administration members to 

convey the mutual and far reaching benefits of 

deepening the ties between the US and Africa. • 



The United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the European 

Union will have far-reaching consequences for nations 

around the world, argues Edwin Laurent 

Trading in a 

post-Brexit 

world 

Roses from Kenya wait 

to be auctioned at Aalsmeer 

Flower auction 

Brexit – the UK’s withdrawal from 

the EU – will see the EU losing its 

second largest economy, or 17% of 

its GDP, and the UK ceasing to 

apply EU treaties. 

The consequences will be 

far-reaching, not just for the future of the UK 

but the rest of the world, in particular African 

countries whose trade and economic relations 

with the UK and Europe have been intricately 

linked since the 1970s. 

Due to several – often unpredictable – 

variables, including the future policy choices 

and actions of and by the UK and the EU, how 

and precisely to what extent African countries 

will be affected by Brexit is not known. 

Understanding the nature of changes 

resulting from Brexit will help inform strategies 

to safeguard and advance Africa’s interests and 

minimise possible damage to its economies 

while capitalising on any opportunities that 

might arise or that can be created. 

Development aid 

The African countries of the African, Caribbean 

and Pacific Group (ACP) receive most of their 

EU support from the European Development 

Fund (EDF) to which the UK is the third largest 

contributor, putting in nearly €4.5 billion. It is 

expected to stop its contributions after Brexit. 

$4.5bn 

is put into the European 

Development Fund by the 

United Kingdom, making 

the UK their third largest 

contributor 

Support does not have to be lost to Africa if the 

UK continues providing the same quantum of 

aid post-Brexit, even if via other intermediary 

international institutions or directly to 

beneficiary countries. Africa will need to ensure 

that it receives at least the same amount of 

resources and that they are disbursed in line 

with its development priorities. 

UK’s economic performance 

Goldman Sachs, the IMF and several economists 

predicted a contraction of the UK economy as a 

result of Brexit. Should the economy shrink, 

even if the UK continues to honour its 

commitment to the UN target for providing 

development aid of 0.7% of GNI, the actual value 

will reduce proportionately. 

Declining economic performance would also 

reduce incomes, which would affect how much 

the African diaspora could afford for 

remittances to family and investment back 

home; UK tourists would cut back on 

expenditure on overseas holidays; and most 

damaging, the UK would be a less attractive 

market for Africa’s exports. 

Trade 

Brexit raises another and more fundamental 

concern for the future of Africa’s exports to the 

UK, which in 2014 totalled $22.7 billion, (Nigeria 



Christopher Furlong/Getty Images 

IMPORTANCE OF THE UK 

Brexit can offer 

new opportunities 

for Africa 

$5.2 billion and South Africa $3.5 billion) or 11.3% 

of the $200 billion exported to the EU. 

Towards a solution 

This hiatus in trade can be averted by a political 

commitment from the UK Government. 

Immediately upon withdrawal from the EU, it 

will unilaterally offer EBA and favourable 

GSP concessions to eligible African countries 

and provide on a transitional basis to 

countries currently exporting under EPAs, 

duty-free access, pending negotiation and 

conclusion of FTAs. Securing such a 

commitment might not be easy, but could be 

pursued along with 

the ACP group of 79 

countries, which is 

a major market for 

UK exports and 

host to substantial 

UK investment. It 

has structure, ethos 

and 40 years of 

engagement with the UK, and can be a valuable 

international ally for the UK. A well organised 

and coherent ACP can leverage this 

attractiveness and bolster its bargaining 

position. Brexit will pose new challenges but it 

can offer new opportunities that Africa must 

seize if it is to prosper in the new era. • 

For several countries, the UK is 

relatively even more important. 

In 2015, 27.8% of Kenya’s exports 

to the EU went to the UK; Gambia 

– 30%; South Africa – 26.7%; 

Seychelles – 34.4%; and 

Mauritius – 26.9%. In addition, 

specific industries often rely 

heavily on the UK market. For 

instance, 65% of Namibia’s 

chilled beef exports to the EU 

go to the UK. 

Caption here 

Much of the trade between UK 

and African countries is enabled 

by EU preferential trading 

arrangements, such as Economic 

Partnership Agreements (EPAs) 

between the EU and ACP regions, 

the Generalised System of 

Preferences (GSP), Everything 

but Arms programme (EBA) and 

Euro-Mediterranean Free Trade 

Area. These help keep African 

exports viable and competitive 

by permitting them to enter 

the UK duty-free or at greatly 

reduced rates. Brexit will result 

in the UK immediately ceasing to 

apply these EU arrangements 

and African exports would pay 

full import duties – unless 

equivalent substitute 

arrangements are adopted. 

But the UK cannot negotiate 

these alternative arrangements 

until after it has formally left 

the EU, and negotiations can 

take many years. 

Having to pay import duty 

could render many African 

exports uncompetitive and even 

jeopardise market presence. 

Once this is lost, even if free 

access is later restored, 

exporters could find that they 

have been supplanted during 

their absence. 


Directory 

National investment organisations 

Official investment and development agencies of African Union member states 

People’s Democratic 

Republic of Algeria 

ANDI, Route Nationale No5 

Cinq Maisons Mohammadia 

Algiers, Algeria 

T: +213 (0)21 52 20 15 

E: sg@andi.dz 

www.andi.dz/en 

Republic of Angola 

Agencia Nacional para o 

Investimento Privado 

T: 001 202 962 0380 

E: hcosta@anip-us.org 

www.anip-angola-us.org 

Republic of Benin 

Centre de Promotion des 

Investissements du Benin 

Cotonou 01 BP 2022 

T: (+229) 21 30 30 62 

E: cpibenin@yahoo.fr 

Benin Chamber of 

Commerce and Industry 

01 BP 31 Cotonou 

(Rep. du Bénin) 

T: (229) 21 31 43 86 

E: info.ccib@ccibenin.org 

www.ccibenin.org 

UK office Consulate of Benin 

Millennium Business Centre, 

Humber Road 

NW2 6DW, London, United 

Kingdom 

T: +44 (0)20 8830 8612 

E: beninconsulate@hotmail. 

co.uk 

www.beninconsulate.co.uk 

US office 

2124 Kalorama Road, NW 

Washington DC, 20008, United 

States 

T: (202) 232-6656 

E: info@beninembassy.us 

www.beninembassy.us 

Republic of Botswana 

Botswana Export Development 

and Investment Authority 

(BEDIA) 

Plot 28 Matsitama Rd, 

PO Box 3122 

Gaborone, Botswana 

T: +267 318 1931 

E: bedia@bedia.bw 

South Africa office 

RSA 88 Stella Street 

3rd Floor Building 

2 Sandown Me ws 

PO Box 781371 Sandton 

South Africa 

T: +2711 884 8959 

E:: mogaral@bedia.co.za 

UK office 

Montle Phuthego, 

6 Stratford Place 

London, W1C 1AY, 

United Kingdom 

T: +44 (0)20 7499 0031 

E: montle@bedia.co.uk 

India office 

No 43 Maker Chamber VI 

Nariman Point 

Mumbai 400 021, 

India 

T: +91 2243 602100 

E: monangeno@bedia.co.in 

www.bedia.co.bw 

Burkina Faso 

Office National de 

Commerce Extérieur 

Direction de la Normalisation et 

de la Promotion de la Qualité 

Immeuble APEX - Burkina 

(ex ONAC) 30 

Avenue de l’UEMOA 

BP: 389, BF-Ouagadougou 01 

T: (+226) 50 31 13 00 

E: secretariat.onac@gmail.com 

www.iso.org 

Republic of Burundi 

API – Agence Burundaise de 

Promotion des 

Investissements 

3 Salah, Salem Road 

Nasr City, Cairo, Egypt 

T: (+202) 2405 5428 

E: info@comesaria.org 

www.comesaria.org 

Republic of Cameroon 

Cellule de Gestion du Code des 

Investissements (CGCI) 

BP 15304, Douala 

Cameroon 

T: (+237) 342 5946 

E: cgci2000@yahoo.com 

Republic of Cape Verde 

Palácio das Comunidades 

Palace of Communities 

Achada Santo António Beach 

CP 237 Cape Verde 

T: +2607911 

E: info.ic@ic.gov.cv 

www.ie.ic.cv 

Central African Republic 

Ministère de l’Economie, du 

Plan et de la Coopération 

Internationale 

Rue Luther King, Bangui Central 

African Republic, BP 696 

T: +236 21 61 78 11 / +236 75 57 

E: info@minplan-rca.org 

www.minplan-rca.org 

Republic of Chad 

Ministère du Commerce 

et de l’Artisanat 

Palais du Gouvernement 

PO Box 4546, N’Djaména, Chad 

T: (235) 52 21 99 

Division de l’industrie 

T: (235) 52 21 79 / (235) 52 27 33 

Direction du Commerce 

T: (235) 52 30 49 

E: chad@wto.refcen.org 

www.primature-tchad.org 

Union of the Comoros 

Comoros National Investment 

Promotion Agency 

T: +269 77 38 570 

E: investcomoros@ 

comorostelecom.km 

www.comesaria.org 

Republic of the Congo 

Ministry of Foreign Affairs 

Government of Republic of 

Congo 

BP 2070 Brazzaville 

Democratic Republic of the 

Congo 

T: 00242 814160 / 00242 814161 

/ 00242 814162 

Republic of Côte d’Ivoire 

Centre de Promotion des 

Investissements en Côte 

d’Ivoire 

5ème étage immeuble CCIA 

Boîte Postale, 152 Abidjan 

Côte d’Ivoire 

T: (225) 20 21 40 70 

E: info@cepici.go.ci 

www.cepici.gouv.ci 

Democratic Republic 

of the Congo 

Agence Nationale pour la 

Promotion des Investissements 

Avenue Colonel Ebeya, No 54, 

2nd Floor, Immeuble de la 

Reconstruction 

(ex-Sozabanque), Kinshasa/ 

Gombe Democratic Republic of 

the Congo 

T: +243 99 99 25 026 

E: anapirdc@anapi.org 

www.anapi.org 


Directory 

Republic of Djibouti 

Invest in Djibouti 

Rue de Marseille 1884 

Djibouti, Republic of Djibuoti 

T: +253 31 21 02 

E: anpi@intnet.dj 

www.djiboutinvest.dj 

Arab Republic of Egypt 

General Authority for 

Investment in Egypt (GAFI) 

T: +202 2405 5452 

E: investorcare@gafinet.org 

www.gafinet.org 

State of Eritrea 

Department of Foreign 

TradeMinistry of Trade and 

Industry 

PO Box 1844, 

Asmara, Eritrea 

T: +291 12-66-94 

Federal Democratic 

Republic of Ethiopia 

Ethiopian Investment Agency 

PO Box 2313 

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia 

T: +251 11 5510033 

E: ethiopian.invest@ 

ethioinvest.org 

www.ethioinvest.org 

Gabonese Republic 

Finatra – La Financière 

Transafricaine 

Bord de Mer, BP 8645, Libreville 

Gabonese Republic 

T: +241 77 40 82 

E: finatra@bgfi.com 

www.bgfi.com 

Fodex – Fonds De 

Développement 

Et D’expansion Des Pme-Pmi 

Route de l’aéroport, BP 3896 

Libreville, Gaboese Republic 

T: +241 44 42 30 

AU IN NUMBERS 

1963 

the Organization of 

African Unity (OAU) 

was established 

32 

African countries 

that had gained 

independence joined 

2002 

the African Union 

was created with 

53 member states 

2011 

South Sudan joined the 

AU, and there are now 

54 member states 

OAU 

was established in 

Addis Ababa,Ethiopia, 

where the headquarters 

are still today 

28th 

African Union Summit is 

taking place this year in 

Addis Ababa, Etiopia 

APIP – Agence De Promotion 

Des Investissements Privés 

Boulevard du bord de Mer, BP 

13740 Libreville, Gaboese 

Republic 

T: +241 76 87 65 

gabon.golden-trade.com/cnt/ 

gt 

Republic of the Gambia 

The Gambia Investment and 

Export Promotion Agency 

GIEPA House, 48a Kairaba 

Avenue Serrekunda, KMC PO 

Box 757 

Banjul, The Gambia 

T: +220 4377377 

E: info@giepa.gm 

www.gipfza.gm/ 

Republic of Ghana 

Ghana Investment 

Promotion Centre 

Public Services Commission 

Building Ministries, Accra, 

Ghana 

T: +233 302 665 125 

E: info@gipcghana.com 

www.gipcghana.com 

Republic of Guinea 

Guinea Private Investment 

Promotion Office – OPIP 

T: +224 41 49 85 

Republic of 

Guinea-Bissau 

Ministry of Economy and 

Finance Private Investment 

Promotion Office 

Rua Justino Lopes 

74a Bissau CP 67 

T: +245 20 36 70 / +245 25 48 07 

Republic of Kenya 

Kenya Investment Authority 

Kenya Railways Headquarters 

Block D, 4th Floor 

Workshop Road, PO Box 55704- 

00200, City Square, 

Nairobi, Kenya 

T: +254 (20) 2221 4014 

E: info@investmentkenya.com 

www.investmentkenya.com 

Kingdom of Lesotho 

Lesotho National 

Development Corporation 

LNDC Headquarters, Block A 

Development House, Kingsway 

Street 

Maseru, Lesotho, 100 

T: +266 22312012 / +266 

52000214 

E: info@lndc.org.ls / ce@lndc. 

org.ls 

www.lndc.org.ls 

Republic of Liberia 

National Investment 

Commission 

Airfield, New Road, Chesseman 

Avenue, Sinkor, Monrovia, 

Liberia 

T: +231 77-333-222 / 78-73001 

E: info@nic.gov.lr 

www.nic.gov.lr 

Libya 

LIDC, Tripoli Tower, 9th floor 

office, no 99, Tripoli, Libya 

T: 00 2 1821 335 1034 

www.libyaninvestment.com 

Republic of Madagascar 

Economic Development 

Board of Madagascar 

Immeuble EDBM, 

Avenue Gal Gabriel 

Ramanantsoa 

Antaninarenina Antananarivo, 

Madagascar 

T: +261 20 22 670 40 / 681 21 

E: edbm@edbm.mg 

www.edbm.gov.mg 


Directory 

Republic of Malawi 

Republic of Niger 

Somali Republic 

Togolese Republic 

Malawi Investment 

Promotion Agency 

Aquarius House, 

1st Floor, 

Private Bag 302, 

Capital City Lilongwe 3, 

Malawi 

T: +265 1 770 800 / 771 315 

E: mipa@mipamw.org 

www.malawi-invest.net 

Republic of Mali 

Agence pour la Promotion des 

Investissements au Mali 

Quartier du Fleuve, 

BP 1980 Bamako, 

République du Mali 

T: +223 20 22 95 25 

E: contact@apimali.gov.ml 

www.apimali.gov.ml/api/en 

Republic of Mauritania 

www.economie.gov.mr 

Republic of Mauritius 

Board of Investment 

10th Floor, One Cathedral 

Square Building, 

16 Jules Koenig Street, 

Port Louis, Republic of 

Mauritius 

T: +230 203 3800 

E: contact@investmauritius. 

com 

www.investmauritius.com 

Republic of Mozambique 

Rua da Imprensa 332 R/C 

Maputo, Mozambique 

T: +258 21313310 

www.mozbusiness.gov.mz 

Republic of Namibia 

Namibia Investment Centre 

Ministry of Trade and Industry 

Block B, Brendan Simbwaye 

Square, Goethe Street, Private 

Bag 13340 

Windhoek, Namibia 

T: +264 61 283 7335 

E: nic@mti.gov.na 

www.mti.gov.na 

La Commission des Affaires 

Étrangères et de la 

Coopération 

Place de la Concertation 

BP 12234, Niamey, Niger 

T: (227) 20 72 27 38 

E: an@assemblee.ne 

www.assemblee.ne 

Federal Republic 

of Nigeria 

Nigerian Investment 

Promotion Commission 

Plot 1181, Aguiyi Ironsi Street 

Maitama District PMB 381 

Garki Abuja, Nigeria 

T: +234 9 290 4882 

E: osicinfodesk@nipc.gov.ng 

www.nipc.gov.ng 

Republic of Rwanda 

Rwanda Development Board 

Boulevard de l’Umuganda, 

Gishushu, Nyarutarama Road, 

PO Box 6239 Kigali, Rwanda 

T: info@rdb.rw 

F: +250 252 580 388 

www.rdb.rw 

Republic of Senegal 

52-54 Rue Mohamed V, 

BP 430 CP 18524, 

Dakar RP, Senegal 

T: +221 33 849 05 55 

E: contact@apix.sn 

www.investinsenegal.com 

Republic of Seychelles 

Seychelles Investment Bureau 

Caravelle House, 2nd Floor, 

Manglier 

Street, PO Box 1167, Victoria, 

Mahe 

Republic of Seychelles 

T: +248 295500 / 295502 

E: sib@seychelles.sc 

www.investinseychelles.sc 

Republic of Sierra Leone 

Sierra Leone Investment and 

Export Promotion Agency 

O.A.U. Drive, Tower Hill 

Freetown, Sierra Leone 

T: +232 22 220788 

E: info@sliepa.org 

www.investsierraleone.biz 

Somali Business and 

Investment Council 

Cinwaanka golaha, Djibouti City 

PO Box 2693, Republic of 

Djibouti 

T: +253 35 46 48 

E: info@somaliinvestment.com 

www.somaliinvestment.com 

Republic of South Africa 

Department of Trade and 

Industry 

77 Meintjies Street, Sunnyside 

Pretoria, Gauteng 0002, South 


T: +27 (12) 394 9500 

E: contactus@thedti.gov.za 

www.thedti.gov.za 

Republic of the Sudan 

Ministry of Investment 

Khartoum – West Hilton 

T: + 249 787193 

E: investment@sudanmail.net 

www.sudaninvest.org 

Kingdom of Swaziland 

Swaziland Investment 

Promotions Authority 

1st Floor 

Nkhotfotjeni Building 

Cnr Msakato & Dezeliwe Street 

Mbabane, Swaziland 

T: +268 2404 0470/2/3/4 

www.sipa.org.sz 

United Republic of 

Tanzania 

Tanzania Investment Centre 

TIC House 

Shabaan Rober Street 

PO Box 938, Dar es Salaam 

Tanzania 

www.tic.co.tz 

Zanzibar Investment 

Promotion Authority 

PO Box 2286, Zanzibar 

T: +255 (0)24 223 3026 

E: zipa@zanzinet.com 

www.zanzibarinvest.org 

Sociéte d’Administration des 

Zones Franches 

2564 Avenue de la Chance 

BP 3250, Lome-Togo 

T: (+228) 253 53 69 

E: n.potcho@zonefranchetogo. 

tg 

Tunisian Republic 

Foreign Investment Promotion 

Agency 

Rue Slaheddine 

El Ammami Centre 

Urbain Nord, 1004, Tunis, 

Tunisia 

T: +216 71 752 540 

E: boc.fipa@mdci.gov.tn 

www.investintunisia.tn 

Republic of Uganda 

Uganda Investment Authority 

The Investment Centre 

Plot 22B Lumumba Avenue 

TWED Plaza, PO Box 7418 

Kampala, Uganda 

T: +256 414 301000 

E: info@ugandainvest.go.ug 

www.ugandainvest.go.ug 

Republic of Zambia 

Zambia Development Agency 

Privatization House 

Nasser Road, PO Box 30819 

Lusaka, Zambia 

T: +260 211 222 858 

E: info@zda.org.zm 

www.zda.org.zm 

Republic of Zimbabwe 

Zimbabwe Investment 

Authority 

Investment House, 109 Rotten 

Row 

PO Box 5950, Harare 

Zimbabwe 

T: +263 4757 

E: info@zia.co.zw 

www.zia.co.zw 


From Routledge… 

China’s G20 Leadership 

John J. Kirton 

A comprehensive 

examination of China’s 

diplomacy and influence 

on the G20 since the 

group’s start as a forum 

for finance ministers and 

central bankers in 1999 

through its elevation to 

the leaders’ level in 

2008. It examines 

China’s role in the 

summits and its plans 

and prospects for the 

2016 Hangzhou Summit. 

The Global Governance 

of Climate Change 

G7, G20, and 

UN Leadership 

John J. Kirton and 

Ella Kokotsis 

An analysis of four decades 

of intergovernmental 

regimes for controlling 

global climate change from 

its 1970s origins to the 

present and demonstrates 

the effectiveness of the 

G7/8 and G20 summit as 

an alternative to the 

United Nations. 

The G8-G20 

Relationship in Global 

Governance 

By Marina Larionova and 

John J. Kirton, editors 

The growing demand for 

global governance 

breathed new life into 

the G7/8 and the G20, 

and raised questions 

about the relationship 

between them. This 

volume considers the 

rough division of labour 

and the interconnections 

– and how that 

relationship can be 

improved. 

G20 Governance for a 

Globalized World 

John J. Kirton 

Follow George Bush and 

Barack Obama, Gordon 

Brown and David Cameron, 

Stephen Harper, Angela 

Merkel and other key 

leaders as they struggle to 

contain the worst recession 

since the Great Depression 

of the 1930s. This book 

provides a full account of 

the first four G20 summits 

from Washington to 

Toronto and beyond. 

Also available as eBooks 

Visit www.routledge.com

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MsC81 

African Agribusiness Incubator Network 82-85 

British American Tobacco 90 

G7G20.com101 

Corporate Council on Africa 111 

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