Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, President of the African Development Bank Group (AfDB), visited the United Bank for Africa (UBA) UK office in London to reinforce the critical role of bridging international capital with African markets. This visit underscored Adesina’s ongoing advocacy highlighting Africa as a prime investment destination, countering prevailing misconceptions about the continent’s risk profile. Adesina cited data from Moody’s Analytics, which reveals Africa’s remarkably low investment default rate of 1.7% over the past 14 years. This stands in stark contrast to other regions, such as Latin America at 13% and Eastern Europe at 10%, demonstrating a significant disparity between perceived and actual investment risk in Africa. The visit cemented the long-standing relationship between the AfDB and UBA, spanning over two decades, and focused on exploring collaborative opportunities to bolster Africa’s financial systems and drive sustainable economic growth.
The meeting between Adesina and UBA UK CEO, Theresa Henshaw, served as a platform for discussing potential partnerships and aligning strategies. Henshaw outlined UBA UK’s primary objective of facilitating trade, investment, and aid flows into Africa, leveraging their extensive knowledge of the continent’s financial landscape. This aligns seamlessly with the AfDB’s broader development agenda, which prioritizes sectors such as agriculture, energy, financial inclusion for women, and youth entrepreneurship. The discussion reinforced the shared commitment of both institutions to fostering economic progress across Africa.
Adesina emphasized the Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa (AFAWA) initiative, a program he spearheaded and which was launched by the French G7 Presidency in 2019. AFAWA aims to address the substantial $49 billion financing gap faced by women-led businesses in Africa. By March 2025, the AfDB, through AFAWA, had approved $2.5 billion in financing, with over $1.2 billion already disbursed to women entrepreneurs via a network of 185 partner financial institutions across 44 African countries. The initiative has empowered more than 24,000 African women through financing and capacity-building programs, demonstrating its tangible impact on promoting women’s entrepreneurship and economic empowerment.
The AFAWA initiative represents a crucial step towards unlocking the untapped potential of women entrepreneurs in Africa. By providing access to finance and capacity-building resources, AFAWA empowers women to establish and grow their businesses, contributing to job creation, economic growth, and overall societal development. The success of AFAWA underscores the importance of targeted interventions to address the specific challenges faced by women entrepreneurs, including limited access to finance, lack of business skills, and societal barriers. The program serves as a model for other initiatives aimed at promoting gender equality and empowering women in business.
The visit to UBA UK highlights the AfDB’s proactive approach to fostering partnerships with key financial institutions to facilitate investment and development in Africa. By collaborating with organizations like UBA, which possess a deep understanding of the African market, the AfDB can effectively channel resources and expertise towards priority sectors, driving sustainable and inclusive growth. The meeting also served as an opportunity to showcase the AfDB’s commitment to addressing the financing gap faced by women entrepreneurs through initiatives like AFAWA.
In conclusion, Adesina’s visit to UBA UK underscores the crucial role of partnerships in driving Africa’s economic transformation. By bridging international capital with African markets and promoting initiatives like AFAWA, the AfDB is working towards creating a more prosperous and inclusive future for the continent. The visit reinforces the message that Africa is not merely a continent of risk, but a continent of opportunity, ripe for investment and poised for significant economic growth. The collaboration between the AfDB and institutions like UBA is essential for realizing this potential and unlocking the vast economic opportunities that Africa has to offer.
