The Case for Gender-Smart Investing in Accelerating Africa’s Economic Transformation
Africa’s growth story cannot be told without women. Women make up more than 50% of the continent’s population and contribute significantly to its economies, from running farms and businesses to driving innovation at the grassroots level. Despite this, women-owned businesses continue to be excluded from mainstream finance by structural barriers such as: Access to finance: […]
Mobilizing Domestic Capital: From Dormant Assets to Scalable Impact
As a continent, Africa’s development story is often told through the lens of aid and external investment. Yet beneath the surface lies a powerful but underutilized resource: domestic capital. Pension funds, insurance reserves, sovereign wealth funds, and diaspora remittances together represent hundreds of billions of dollars. But much of this capital remains locked in low-yield, […]
Africa’s Workforce for Tomorrow: Investing in Jobs, Skills and Innovation
Africa’s young population is growing faster than formal employment opportunities. This mismatch threatens social stability, but also signals the urgency of rethinking how skills are developed and jobs are created. Reports show that every year, nearly 12 million young Africans enter the labor force, but only about 3 million formal jobs are created. And that […]
From Risk to Resilience: How Africa Can Lead on Catalytic Capital Models
Despite decades of effort and billions in development financing, Africa continues to face a deep and persistent investment gap. Public budgets and traditional donor financing are stretched thin. And while the continent’s entrepreneurial and policy innovation ecosystem is growing, private capital remains hesitant, especially when it comes to high-impact sectors like healthcare, climate resilience, education, […]
AI for Impact: How Technology is Powering Inclusive Solutions in Africa
Africa is embracing Artificial Intelligence (AI). It is shaping how communities tackle health, education, climate resilience, and economic inclusion. While global conversations on AI often focus on automation and efficiency, the story in Africa is different. AI is emerging as a tool for impact; from bridging access gaps to scaling local innovations, it is unlocking […]
Private Sector at the Forefront: The Role of Business in Achieving the SDGs
When the United Nations adopted the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015, they set an ambitious vision of a world without poverty, hunger, and inequality, built on fairness and care for the environment. The Business & Sustainable Development Commission estimates that achieving the SDGs by 2030 could unlock $12 trillion in new market opportunities globally, […]
Unlocking Africa’s Sustainable Growth
By Tochukwu Ezeukwu, Regional Director, West Africa Experts agree Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is a growth frontier crucial to global economic growth into the future while maintaining resilience in the face of strong headwinds. Despite its potential, including abundant natural resources and a youthful population; the region has not delivered levels of economic growth enough to […]
Future-Proofing Africa; Why It’s Time to Invest in Resilience and Innovation
Africa stands at a crucial crossroads. On one side is the legacy of aid dependence and fragmented development efforts; on the other, a bold new vision: one driven by innovation, catalytic capital, and African-led solutions for long-term resilience and growth. At the core of this shift is the growing understanding that safeguarding Africa’s future requires […]
The $42 Billion Gap: Why Gender-Smart Investing Must Go Deeper
Across the continent, women are holding up entire industries, from township stalls to tech startups, from rural agriculture to green infrastructure. They are building, selling, creating jobs, and sustaining livelihoods. But there is a disconnect: while women are powering Africa’s economies, they’re largely locked out of the capital needed to scale their work. That’s not […]
Africa’s 50Billion Dollar Question: Will We Invest in Our Youth?
Africa is at a pivotal moment. Recent global disruptions from the COVID-19 pandemic and geopolitical tensions, to sharp declines in foreign aid, have exposed the continent’s structural vulnerabilities. At the same time, Africa is home to the world’s youngest population, with over 60% under the age of 25. As development aid shrinks by an estimated […]