The second edition of the Africa Investment Forum (AIF-2019) has ended on a high note Wednesday, with 56 boardroom deals valued at $67.6 billion tabled – a 44% increase from last year, the African development Bank said in a statement.
Among the deals, a $600 million COCOBOD deal was sealed for Ghana, for cocoa processing and warehousing. Another $58 million deal was signed for the Alithea Identity Fund for women and a concession agreement for the Accra Sky Train, worth $2.6 billion.
During the 2018 edition of the Forum, 61 transactions valued at $46.9 billion were tabled for discussions in boardroom sessions and 49 deals worth $38.7 billion, secured investment interest.
Over 2,221 participants attended this year’s Forum from 109 countries, including 48 from Africa.
This year’s forum focused on projects and advancing deals spanning several sectors, including Energy, Infrastructure, Transport and Utilities, Industry, agriculture, ICT and Telecoms. “Now the hard work begins to fast track these deals to financial closure… Africa is bankable,” AfDB President Akinwumi Adesina said.
Akinwumi Adesina took the opportunity to make a promise to institutional investors: “We are going to work even harder and we are going to be more and more dynamic.” The Bank President also pledged to devote significant time to young African entrepreneurs at the forthcoming Forum 2020.