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<p>Africa Business Weekly on CNBC Africa brings you the most impactful business stories across sub-Saharan Africa every week. From the capital markets to economic news affecting the regions from East, West ad Southern Africa, we will speak to the major newsmakers from across the sub-Saharan Africa region to get exciting and unique angles to the stories shaping the continent.</p>


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Africa Business Weekly: Senegal’s Amadou Hott pitches for AfDB presidency

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<p>Hot on the heels of the 55th Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, East Africa’s largest city is today hosting the continent’s business leaders, heads of state, and development partners to advance the World Bank’s Mission 300 Africa Energy Summit. This, in partnership with the African Development Bank, will chart Africa’s course toward universal access to energy.</p>


Africa Energy Summit kicks off in Dar es Salaam

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<p>The 2024 Market Days in Rabat, Morocco brought investors and project developers together across 41 dynamic boardrooms. They reviewed and engaged on 37 transformative projects spanning transport, power, energy, agribusiness, mining, pharmaceuticals, tourism, urban infrastructure, water management, and more. After three intense days of discussions and negotiations, the Forum recorded an impressive $29.2 billion in new investor interests.</p>


Africa Investment Forum 2024 Market Days amasses $29.2bn in deals

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<p>Africa&#8217;s biggest investment platform showcases the continent&#8217;s investment opportunities. The Africa Investment Forum saw global investors, heads of development finance institutions and government leaders will ascend to Rabat, Morocco to advance critical investment transactions to closure. This highlights special brings you key voices from the event.</p>


Highlights Special: The Africa Investment Forum 2024

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<p>Contributing nearly 40 per cent to South Africa&#8217;s GDP, Gauteng stands as the economic powerhouse of the country and a gateway to investment across Africa. Join CNBC Africa for the Invest Gauteng Breakfast panel discussion where we bring together government leaders, industry executives, and investors to explore Gauteng’s economic outlook, strategic development initiatives, and unparalleled investment opportunities.</p>


Gauteng Investment Roadshow: Investing in Gauteng

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<p>Africa&#8217;s biggest investment platform returns to CNBC Africa this week, showcasing the continent&#8217;s investment opportunities in the final year of President Akinwumi Adesina&#8217;s term. The Africa Investment Forum will see global investors, heads of development finance institutions and government leaders will ascend to Rabat, Morocco to advance critical investment transactions to closure. #AfricaInvestmentForum #AIF2024 #InvestInAfrica</p>


Africa Investment Forum 2024: Leveraging Innovative Partnerships For Scale

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<p>An important aspect of building a prosperous and interconnected Africa is leveraging collaboration &#038; partnerships. This highlights special of the Connecting Africa Conference 2024 explores the joint effort between the African Development Bank and Transnet on connecting and moving Africa.</p>


Connecting Africa 2024: Highlights Special

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<p>This episode of Focus On highlights South Africa’s freight and logistics company &#8211; Transnet. We explore the recent $18.85 billion corporate loan granted by the African Development Bank and how the state-owned company plan to use the funds its towards recovery.</p>


Focus On: Connecting Africa: Building Africa’s railroad recovery

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<p>Africa’s infrastructure financing gap is estimated to be around $100 billion according to the African Development Bank. Reducing this financing gap does not only require funding and political will but collaboration across multiple sectors. This panel discussion invites industry experts to discuss lessons from private sector participation projects across the continent and how they can catalyze Africa&#8217;s infrastructure development.</p>


Connecting Africa: Lessons from private sector participation projects

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<p>Africa50 General Shareholders Meeting gathered in Madagascar for it&#8217;s 2024 edition. Shareholders assembled to discuss Africa&#8217;s finances to fund renewable projects and find new ways to recycle assets.</p>


Focus On Africa50 Acceleration Fund Allocation

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<p>Africa&#8217;s energy framework is at a significant turning point, increasingly focusing on alternative energy solutions. Nonetheless, the challenges posed by global funding and infrastructural demands remain critical. CNBC Africa will bring key voices from the Africa50 General Shareholders Meeting in Madagascar, where pivotal stakeholders will engage in discussions regarding innovative financing approaches to enhance the implementation of renewable infrastructure initiatives.</p>


The 2024 Africa50 General Shareholders Meeting

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<p>The Africa50 GSM 2024 aims to accelerate infrastructure development and investment in high-impact sectors. As Madagascar is the host country for this year&#8217;s Africa50 GSM, this Focus On will place Madagascar&#8217;s economy under the spotlight and highlight crucial areas in need of investment as the country strives for a slice of the green funding pie.</p>


Focus On: Africa50 General Shareholder’s Meeting 2024


<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/wmp-9109-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-508505" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/wmp-9109-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/wmp-9109-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/wmp-9109-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/wmp-9109-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/wmp-9109-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/wmp-9109-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption"><em>Rassem Zok &#8211; Chief Executive, Middle East, Standard Bank Group</em></figcaption></figure>



<p>Africa has made significant progress in terms of infrastructure development, committing billions of dollars to improve its transportation, energy, water, and digital networks. This infrastructure boom is crucial for boosting economic growth, creating jobs, and reducing poverty across the continent. With the right investments and reforms, Africa can build the modern infrastructure needed to boost trade, create jobs, and transform the continent&#8217;s economic prospects.</p>



<p>Yet current investment still falls far short of demand. According to the African Development Bank, the continent has a $100 billion annual shortfall in infrastructure financing. This infrastructure gap is not only impacting lives today, but also significantly curtailing the continent’s potential for economic, entrepreneurial, and developmental progress. The African Union estimates that inadequate infrastructure has led to the reduction of national economic growth by 2% annually in most African countries and as much as 40% reduction in industrial productivity.</p>



<p>If we manage to close this gap, we unlock the immense potential of infrastructure – and especially sustainable infrastructure – to drive growth and development on the continent. There is a real desire amongst state-owned companies (SOCs) to do so, and an increasing awareness amongst investors of the alignment of interests that opportunities in African infrastructure represent.</p>



<p>We have noticed, in particular that Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries have stepped up their investments in Africa as they look to diversify their own economies. The GCC&#8217;s strategic policy priorities and economic diversification interests align perfectly with the opportunity to support Africa&#8217;s development agenda, and the GCC is equipped with the technical expertise and financial resources necessary to bridge Africa’s investment gap through innovative public-private partnerships (PPPs).</p>



<p>Over the past decade, the GCC has emerged as a major investor across Africa, with a growing number of trade deals finalised that significantly benefit both regions. Dubai is increasingly establishing itself as the gateway to African investment. Investing in Africa, and developing relationships with SOCs and financial institutions, allows GCC nations to access new markets, expand business operations, and secure access to abundant natural resources. The GCC states generally have superb relationships with many of the 20 countries in which our Group has a universal presence, which is an important foundation for the development of effective PPPs and direct investment projects.</p>



<p>&nbsp;Iconic transactions of late include the acquisition of Imperial Logistics, a South African logistics operator, by DP World, the global infrastructure-led supply chain solutions provider based in Dubai. As a result of this transaction, DP World gained a stronger foothold in Africa and Imperial Logistics benefitted from DP World&#8217;s leading technology, global networks, and key trade-lane volumes. It’s a win for DP World and Imperial Logistics – the two are clients of the bank.</p>



<p>Another success has been our partnership with DP World to offer trade finance solutions to African SMEs, which will help in closing the gap in unmet demand for working capital on the continent. This partnership reflects our strategic vision of driving Africa’s growth, and is a demonstration of our commitment, as Africa’s largest bank, to the transition of financial services to platform-based ecosystems and to the improvement of client experiences.</p>



<p>ESG and the broad-scale sustainable impact of our work is a key focus area for Standard Bank, and this aligns with the appetitive for sustainability that we’ve seen from the UAE. UAE investors are sophisticated supporters of the vision of more circular economies and are making a demonstrable impact in enabling a just transition for the continent.</p>



<p>Spurred by the benefits of economic diversification, GCC countries are actively investing in high-growth sectors such as clean energy, manufacturing, and logistics, while also committing to sustainable development projects including food and water security. Against this backdrop, the opportunities in African infrastructure align seamlessly with the GCC states&#8217; multi-sectoral investment appetite.</p>



<p>We have, for the past four years, facilitated the State-Owned Company Investment Summit, which introduces large sovereign-owned companies to investors from the MENA region. Each year we record tangible, significant successes as a result of the summit.</p>



<p>It was as a result of last year’s Investment Summit that Standard Bank was able to facilitate a unique syndication facility for the Development Bank of Southern Africa in the UAE. The US$255 million facility was the first of its kind to be successfully accessed by a South African state-owned entity in the UAE and broader Middle East/North Africa (MENA) markets, representing a milestone for both DBSA and for South African fundraising initiatives in the UAE.</p>



<p>Standard Bank and UAE-based Mashreq were joint lead mandated arrangers in a deal which was oversubscribed, demonstrating significant market interest from UAE investors and the MENA broader region. The DBSA mandated Standard Bank to act as the mandated lead arranger to anchor and raise US dollar liquidity to diversify its global investor base.</p>



<p>Standard Bank is actively involved in supporting effective PPPs by demonstrating the economic value that derives from these projects, and through the rigorous governance structures that we’ve optimised. Risk is managed through an end-to-end process that takes deep cognisance of the value chains that are required for doing business in Africa, and which gives our partners comfort and security and the confidence to engage in these beneficial transactions.</p>



<p>There is nothing exceptional in terms of the risk projects face in Africa. What is unique is the degree to which local knowledge is able to ameliorate risk. In more mature markets, there isn’t the same degree of guidance required. In Africa, an experienced hand guiding the process is far more valuable.</p>



<p>Doing business in Africa requires an understanding of cultural sensitivities and experience as to what works. Africa is not a country: it is a continent made up of 54 disparate nations with unique operating environments. Our continental expertise is born of on-the-ground experience and a commitment to innovative, world-leading funding and risk-management solutions.</p>



<p>We believe in Africa, and we&#8217;re committed to its success. The vast proportion of our balance sheet is deployed in Africa. We have 50 000 experienced, knowledgeable staff who drive our return on equity. We have a universal presence in 20 African countries. We have offices in Dubai, Beijing, London and New York, and expect our new representative office to be opened in Egypt by year end. This will allow us to capitalise on the significant emergence of the Gulf–sub-Saharan-Africa–Egypt corridors, and further support our clients in those corridors.</p>



<p>The future looks bright for the cross-border opportunities available across Africa. As the largest bank in Africa, our largest stakeholder, in a sense, is the continent itself. That awareness drives our partnerships with multinationals, regional corporates, state structures and sovereign funds to enable cross-border flows – because they are critical catalysts of African growth and significant opportunities for value creation.</p>



<p></p>


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Unlocking continental potential: The importance of local knowledge in African infrastructure investment

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<p>The Board of Governors of the African Development bank Group approved a $117-billion General Callable Capital increase at the annual meetings in Nairobi, Kenya. Catch some of the key outcomes, this year, on this special recap on CNBC Africa, where we bring you exclusive insights from the side-lines where calls were made for a reform of the global financial architecture.</p>


Focus On: AfDB Governors approve $117bn General Callable Capital increase

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<p>Catch the pivotal discussions shaping Africa&#8217;s economic future at the 59th Annual Meeting of the African Development Bank Group, from Nairobi. Explore the reform of the global financial architecture and Africa&#8217;s transformation agenda from this gathering of influential minds, driving progress across the continent.</p>


African Development Bank Group Annual Meetings 2024: Highlights Special

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<p>Witness the pinnacle of excellence and innovation in African banking with African Banker Awards. Explore the ground-breaking reforms, modernization, and expansive growth driving Africa&#8217;s financial sector forward. Join us as we unveil the remarkable achievements shaping the future of banking across the continent on CNBC Africa.</p>


African Banker Awards 2024: Highlights Special

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<p>The BRICS Alliance, together with the new member additions, provides immense trade and investment opportunities for the African continent. A panel of industry experts delve into the benefits of AfCFTA and BRICS Plus and how enhanced bilateral investment agreements can improve trade between BRICS Plus members and the African continent.</p>


African Development Bank

Africa Business Weekly: Senegal’s Amadou Hott pitches for AfDB presidency

Africa Energy Summit kicks off in Dar es Salaam

Africa Investment Forum 2024 Market Days amasses $29.2bn in deals

Highlights Special: The Africa Investment Forum 2024

Gauteng Investment Roadshow: Investing in Gauteng

Africa Investment Forum 2024: Leveraging Innovative Partnerships For Scale

Connecting Africa 2024: Highlights Special

Focus On: Connecting Africa: Building Africa’s railroad recovery

Connecting Africa: Lessons from private sector participation projects

Focus On Africa50 Acceleration Fund Allocation

The 2024 Africa50 General Shareholders Meeting

Focus On: Africa50 General Shareholder’s Meeting 2024

Unlocking continental potential: The importance of local knowledge in African infrastructure investment

Focus On: AfDB Governors approve $117bn General Callable Capital increase

African Development Bank Group Annual Meetings 2024: Highlights Special

African Banker Awards 2024: Highlights Special

AfDB Annual Meetings 2024: BRICS Plus & Africa: Trade & Investment Opportunities for the Continent

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African Development Bank

Africa Business Weekly: Senegal’s Amadou Hott pitches for AfDB presidency

Africa Energy Summit kicks off in Dar es Salaam

Africa Investment Forum 2024 Market Days amasses $29.2bn in deals

Highlights Special: The Africa Investment Forum 2024

Gauteng Investment Roadshow: Investing in Gauteng

Africa Investment Forum 2024: Leveraging Innovative Partnerships For Scale

Connecting Africa 2024: Highlights Special

Focus On: Connecting Africa: Building Africa’s railroad recovery

Connecting Africa: Lessons from private sector participation projects

Focus On Africa50 Acceleration Fund Allocation

The 2024 Africa50 General Shareholders Meeting

Focus On: Africa50 General Shareholder’s Meeting 2024

Unlocking continental potential: The importance of local knowledge in African infrastructure investment

Focus On: AfDB Governors approve $117bn General Callable Capital increase

African Development Bank Group Annual Meetings 2024: Highlights Special

African Banker Awards 2024: Highlights Special

AfDB Annual Meetings 2024: BRICS Plus & Africa: Trade & Investment Opportunities for the Continent

News Tips

Advertise With Us

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