
<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>


wmp-9109

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

<div style="max-width: 100%;">
  <video-js
    data-account="1571595826001"
    data-player="c0AOssA7"
    data-video-id="6201685369001"
    data-embed="default"
    controls=""
    data-application-id=""
    class="vjs-fluid"></video-js>
</div>
<p><script src="//players.brightcove.net/1571595826001/c0AOssA7_default/index.min.js">
</script></p>
<p>82-year-old President of Guinea, Alpha Conde; who has ruled the West African country for the last 10 years is seeking third term re-election at the polls this weekend. He will be contesting against a longtime rival Cellou Diallo in Sunday’s Presidential election. Achike Chude, Political Affairs Commentator and Vice Chairman of the Joint Action Front joins CNBC Africa for more.</p>


Guineans gear up for presidential elections: What’s at stake?

<div style="max-width: 100%;">
  <video-js
    data-account="1571595826001"
    data-player="c0AOssA7"
    data-video-id="6201676140001"
    data-embed="default"
    controls=""
    data-application-id=""
    class="vjs-fluid"></video-js>
</div>
<p><script src="//players.brightcove.net/1571595826001/c0AOssA7_default/index.min.js">
</script></p>
<p>According to Swiss Re Institute, Sigma, the Infrastructure gap in emerging economies is projected to reach about $520 billion annually over the next 20 years. Jerome Haegeli, Group Chief Economist and Managing Director of Swiss Re says it is now more than ever important to invest in sustainable, quality infrastructure which will close access gaps and improves economic and social outcomes. Haegeli joins CNBC Africa’s Kenneth Igbomor to look at how the COVID-19 is impacting perception for infrastructure financing.</p>


How COVID-19 is impacting perception for infrastructure financing

<div style="display: block; position: relative; max-width: 730px;">
<div style="padding-top: 56.25%;"><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; top: 0px; bottom: 0px; right: 0px; left: 0px;" src="//players.brightcove.net/1571595826001/default_default/index.html?videoId=6060793631001" allowfullscreen="" border=0 frameborder=0></iframe></div>
</div>
<p>When it comes to infrastructure financing, Africa is still doing catch up with the rest of the world but according to thought leaders at the Africa 50 summit, the issue is not finance but rather bankable projects. CNBC Africa&#8217;s Arnold Kwizera caught up with CEO of Africa 50 Alain Ebobissé for more.</p>


Africa 50 CEO Alain Ebobissé on bridging the infrastructure financing gap in Africa

<div style="display: block; position: relative; max-width: 730px;">
<div style="padding-top: 56.25%;"><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; top: 0px; bottom: 0px; right: 0px; left: 0px;" src="//players.brightcove.net/1571595826001/default_default/index.html?videoId=6057916700001" allowfullscreen="" border=0 frameborder=0></iframe></div>
</div>
<p>Last year, China pledged $60 billion in loans to Africa with the amount raising eye brows in some countries that felt they were falling into a debt trap, a fact that has been refuted by leaders on the continent, CNBC Africa&#8217;s Arnold Kwizera caught up with Africa Development Bank (ADB) President Akinwumi Adesina for more.</p>


Is Africa falling into a debt trap?

<p>* Countries require $2.4 tln to meet needs, U.N. goals</p>
<p>* Investments fall short under current trend</p>
<p>* Fighting corruption, reforms key to attracting capital</p>
<p>By Joe Bavier</p>
<p>JOHANNESBURG, July 3 (Reuters) &#8211; A group of 10 African nations, including some of the continent’s rising economic stars, will fall $1 trillion short of the infrastructure financing required to meet U.N.ited development goals by 2040, a study released on Tuesday found.</p>
<p>The report by the Global Infrastructure Hub (GIH) of the G20 wealthy and developing nations exposes the challenges facing one of the world’s least developed regions. But it also highlights the opportunities for investors willing to take the plunge.</p>
<p>“Africa is a fascinating continent for investors,” GIH Chief Executive Chris Heathcote told Reuters. “They’re not saying ‘Am I going to Africa?’. They’re saying ‘I am going to Africa. I want to go to Africa. Which country should I go to?’”</p>
<p>The GIH report focuses on Morocco, Ethiopia, Ivory Coast, Senegal, Egypt, Ghana, Tunisia, Benin, Guinea and Rwanda &#8211; all participants in the G20’s ‘Compact with Africa’ initiative, which aims to channel investment to the continent.</p>
<p>To keep pace with success stories such as Vietnam in terms of developing roads, railways, airports, sea ports, electricity, water and physical telecommunications infrastructure these nations will require investments of $2 trillion through 2040.</p>
<p>Meeting the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals, which call for universal access to power and water by 2030, would require $383 billion in additional investment, the study found, bringing the total to around $2.4 trillion.</p>
<p>If they maintain their current average investment level of 4.9 percent of gross domestic product, that would leave the 10 countries with a 42 percent funding gap to fill.</p>
<p>African nations do not have the resources to ramp up infrastructure spending on their own, even with backing from aid agencies and multilateral donor institutions, Heathcote said, and so attracting private sector investment is essential.</p>
<p>Major international conglomerates including Bouygues , Bollore, China Railway Construction Corp and General Electric are already active in African power, transportation and construction.</p>
<p>A pool of potential infrastructure financing was now poised to enter Africa under the right conditions, Heathcote said.</p>
<p>“There is a wall of money being held by the pension funds. They are looking more and more at emerging market infrastructure,” he said.</p>
<p>Unleashing that money, however, will require clamping down on the corruption and inefficiencies that have long hindered large-scale investment in Africa.</p>
<p>Heathcote points to Rwanda, where private investment represents two thirds of infrastructure spending, as an example of how it can be done right.</p>
<p>“They worked out that if you run transparent processes, if you have clear regulation that allows you to understand what your outcomes are likely to be in the long-term in your contracts, then investors will look very seriously at you.” (Reporting by Joe Bavier Editing by Edmund Blair)</p>


Why ten African countries could fall short of $1 trillion infrastructure financing

<div style="display: block; position: relative; max-width: 640px;">
<div style="padding-top: 56.25%;"><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; top: 0px; bottom: 0px; right: 0px; left: 0px;" src="//players.brightcove.net/1571595826001/default_default/index.html?videoId=5605591820001" allowfullscreen="" border=0 frameborder=0></iframe></div>
</div>
<p>According to John Macomber, a senior lecturer at Harvard Business School, infrastructure deficit exists on the African continent because capital is not efficiently matched to infrastructure projects.</p>


Financing Africa’s infrastructure

<div style="display: block; position: relative; max-width: 640px;">
<div style="padding-top: 56.25%;"><iframe loading="lazy" style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; top: 0px; bottom: 0px; right: 0px; left: 0px;" src="//players.brightcove.net/1571595826001/default_default/index.html?videoId=5532029363001" width="300" height="150" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></div>
</div>
<p>According to one of Nigeria&#8217;s top dancers, Kaffy; dancers will soon become the mainstay of the country&#8217;s entertainment industry but how has this industry evolved over time in Nigeria? Kaffy, Nigerian Dancer, Choreographer and Founder of the Imagento Dance Company joins CNBC Africa for this discussion.</p>


Dancers are to rule Nigeria’s entertainment industry – Kaffy

<div style="display: block; position: relative; max-width: 640px;">
<div style="padding-top: 56.25%;"><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; top: 0px; bottom: 0px; right: 0px; left: 0px;" src="//players.brightcove.net/1571595826001/default_default/index.html?videoId=5529895885001" allowfullscreen="" border=0 frameborder=0></iframe></div>
</div>
<p>CNBC Africa&#8217;s Christycole Popoola spoke to Solomon Asamoah, CEO of the Ghana Infrastructure Investment Fund about how best to structure infrastructure investment transactions in Africa.</p>


Structuring infrastructure transactions in Africa

<div style="display: block; position: relative; max-width: 640px;">
<div style="padding-top: 56.25%;"><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; top: 0px; bottom: 0px; right: 0px; left: 0px;" src="//players.brightcove.net/1571595826001/default_default/index.html?videoId=5528698274001" allowfullscreen="" border=0 frameborder=0></iframe></div>
</div>
<p>Nigeria&#8217;s Home grown school feeding program aims to feed 24 million children in schools across the country. With 70 Naira per child a day, the government hopes to increase enrolment in primary schools and improve nutrition.</p>


Is Nigeria’s school feeding programme sustainable?

<div style="display: block; position: relative; max-width: 640px;">
<div style="padding-top: 56.25%;"><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; top: 0px; bottom: 0px; right: 0px; left: 0px;" src="//players.brightcove.net/1571595826001/default_default/index.html?videoId=5524425873001" allowfullscreen="" border=0 frameborder=0></iframe></div>
</div>
<p>Successful development and infrastructure financing in Africa require collaborative efforts of the government, private investors and entrepreneurs, who must put forward bankable projects.</p>


What is a bankable project in Africa?

<div style="display: block; position: relative; max-width: 640px;">
<div style="padding-top: 56.25%;"><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; top: 0px; bottom: 0px; right: 0px; left: 0px;" src="//players.brightcove.net/1571595826001/default_default/index.html?videoId=5511172944001" allowfullscreen="" border=0 frameborder=0></iframe></div>
</div>
<p>Philip Southwell, the chairman of the investment committee at Chapel Hill Denham Management says the infrastructure financing opportunity in Nigeria is huge. CNBC Africa&#8217;s Wole Famurewa spoke to him.</p>


infrastructure financing

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

Guineans gear up for presidential elections: What’s at stake?

How COVID-19 is impacting perception for infrastructure financing

Africa 50 CEO Alain Ebobissé on bridging the infrastructure financing gap in Africa

Is Africa falling into a debt trap?

Why ten African countries could fall short of $1 trillion infrastructure financing

Financing Africa’s infrastructure

Dancers are to rule Nigeria’s entertainment industry – Kaffy

Structuring infrastructure transactions in Africa

Is Nigeria’s school feeding programme sustainable?

What is a bankable project in Africa?

Chapel Hill Denham’s Philip Southwell talks infrastructure financing in Nigeria

News Tips

Advertise With Us

infrastructure financing

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

Guineans gear up for presidential elections: What’s at stake?

How COVID-19 is impacting perception for infrastructure financing

Africa 50 CEO Alain Ebobissé on bridging the infrastructure financing gap in Africa

Is Africa falling into a debt trap?

Why ten African countries could fall short of $1 trillion infrastructure financing

Financing Africa’s infrastructure

Dancers are to rule Nigeria’s entertainment industry – Kaffy

Structuring infrastructure transactions in Africa

Is Nigeria’s school feeding programme sustainable?

What is a bankable project in Africa?

Chapel Hill Denham’s Philip Southwell talks infrastructure financing in Nigeria

News Tips

Advertise With Us

Newsletters