Africa needs to mobilise more domestic capital, develop investment-ready infrastructure projects and expand local processing of natural resources to increase the scale and economic impact of investment, according to Alain Ebobissé, chief executive of Africa50.
Speaking to Bloomberg’s Haslinda Amin at the 2026 Bloomberg New Economy Forum in New Delhi, Ebobissé argued that Africa’s mineral resources, renewable energy potential and growing consumer markets offered significant opportunities, but that converting these advantages into sustained economic development required stronger institutions, commercially viable projects and more coordinated financing.
Africa50, a pan-African infrastructure investment platform established with the support of the African Development Bank, combines project development with investment and financing. Its stated mandate is to help close the continent’s infrastructure gap by mobilising public and private capital. According to its official website, the platform focuses on projects that offer development benefits alongside risk-adjusted returns for investors.
Ebobissé said Africa50 had deployed approximately $9bn across its investment activities. He argued that attracting larger pools of institutional capital would depend partly on assembling projects at sufficient scale to meet investors’ requirements.
The emphasis on project scale reflects a wider challenge facing African economies: natural resource wealth and domestic savings do not automatically translate into productive investment, industrial capacity or employment.
Local processing and industrial development
Ebobissé highlighted the strategic importance of critical minerals and renewable energy as global industries expand their requirements for electricity, electrification technologies and mineral inputs.
Africa’s role in supplying minerals such as cobalt gives the continent an established position in global supply chains. However, the economic benefits countries retain depend on more than extraction volumes. Processing capacity, energy availability, transport infrastructure, skills development and access to markets also influence how much value is generated and retained locally.
Ebobissé argued that Africa captures only a small proportion of the potential value of its natural resources, calling for greater investment in manufacturing and domestic processing rather than continued dependence on unprocessed commodity exports.
Such a transition would require substantial investment in electricity generation, transmission networks, transport corridors and industrial facilities. It would also require commercially sustainable operations, predictable regulation and access to technology and technical expertise.
Local processing is not automatically competitive in every country or commodity. Its viability depends on production costs, reliable energy supplies, market access and the ability to operate at an efficient scale. Regional cooperation could therefore be important in developing industrial capacity beyond the limits of individual national markets.
Domestic capital and the financing gap
Ebobissé also called for greater mobilisation of African financial resources alongside international investment.
The African Development Bank’s New African Financial Architecture for Development identifies an estimated $4tn in domestic capital pools across Africa, including banking assets, pension and insurance funds, central bank reserves, development banks and sovereign wealth funds. The institution estimates the continent’s annual development financing gap at more than $400bn.
These figures point to a structural challenge: substantial financial assets exist across African economies, but they are not necessarily available for long-term infrastructure investment. Their deployment depends on liquidity requirements, investment mandates, regulatory frameworks, risk assessments and the availability of projects capable of generating appropriate returns.
“If we have local capital go first, or go together with others, I think that will drive additional capital finally,” Ebobissé said.
Greater participation by African pension funds, insurers and other institutional investors could help establish a domestic financing base for infrastructure. However, these institutions have obligations to their beneficiaries and cannot be expected to finance projects that fail to meet their fiduciary responsibilities.
Currency volatility, political uncertainty and the lengthy development cycles associated with infrastructure can also discourage investment. Risk-sharing mechanisms, guarantees and stronger macroeconomic management may help address these constraints, provided that risks are allocated transparently and public liabilities remain manageable.
The African Development Bank’s proposed financial architecture seeks to improve coordination between African financial institutions and international partners, with the aim of directing more available capital towards development priorities.
Faster project development and regional markets
The availability of investment-ready projects remains another constraint. Ebobissé said infrastructure projects typically take five to seven years to reach financial close, compared with an average of approximately 2.5 years for Africa50.
These figures, presented by the chief executive, were not independently verified for this article.
Project preparation involves feasibility studies, financial structuring, environmental and social assessments, regulatory approvals and negotiations between governments, developers and financiers. Delays at these stages can increase costs and prevent projects from progressing to construction.
Ebobissé called for development finance institutions to commit more resources to early-stage preparation, arguing that financing construction alone would not resolve the shortage of bankable projects.
He also identified the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) as an opportunity to strengthen the commercial case for infrastructure by expanding access to regional markets. A more integrated market could support cross-border electricity networks, transport corridors and industrial supply chains, allowing businesses to reach customers beyond their domestic economies.
However, the benefits will depend on the practical implementation of trade commitments, improved connectivity and the removal of regulatory barriers.
For African governments, the challenge is therefore not simply to attract more foreign investment. It is to develop the institutions, infrastructure and financing arrangements that enable investment to support productive capacity, regional trade and employment.
Africa’s domestic capital and natural resources provide important foundations, but their contribution to long-term development will depend on how effectively they are converted into viable projects and broader economic opportunities.
