Africa’s development challenge is no longer simply about generating ideas. It is increasingly about how to finance those ideas, scale proven solutions and build the institutional partnerships capable of turning development ambitions into measurable economic and social outcomes.
That question moved to the centre of the global development conversation in New York as the inaugural Africa Social Impact Summit (ASIS) Global Action Forum brought African development priorities to an international audience of government leaders, investors, businesses, philanthropists, development institutions and civil society organisations.
Held on the sidelines of the 81st United Nations General Assembly (UNGA81), the Forum represented a deliberate effort to move Africa’s development financing debate beyond conventional discussions about funding shortages towards a more practical conversation about capital mobilisation, investment partnerships, local ownership and execution.
Convened by Sterling One Foundation in partnership with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and RALLY, an Indianapolis-based coalition of InnoPower Global and Sagamore, as Strategic Co-Hosts, the Forum extended the outcomes of the fifth Africa Social Impact Summit held in Lagos in July into a global setting.
Its theme, “Financing for Development: Building Resilience and Transforming Emerging Economies,” captured one of the continent’s most pressing economic realities: Africa requires significantly more capital to address its development needs, but the quality, structure and deployment of that capital may be as important as the amount available.
The discussions therefore centred on how domestic and international capital can be mobilised more effectively, how partnerships can reduce investment barriers, and how locally developed solutions can be supported to move beyond isolated projects into scalable economic models.
At the heart of the Forum was the recognition that Africa does not lack entrepreneurs, innovators, institutions or opportunities. The persistent challenge is connecting those assets with patient capital, technical expertise, credible institutions and markets capable of supporting long-term growth.
That distinction is important.
Traditional development financing has often focused on individual interventions or projects. But the scale of Africa’s challenges requires broader financing ecosystems capable of supporting businesses, infrastructure, institutions, human capital and entire value chains.
Governor of Katsina State, Malam Dikko Umaru Radda, captured the challenge by arguing that Africa’s development problems require more than ambition. They require financing structures and partnerships capable of converting opportunities into tangible results.
His position reinforces the growing expectation that African governments must do more than seek funding. They must create the conditions that allow private capital, development finance, philanthropy and other sources of investment to participate effectively.
This means strengthening institutions, improving the investment environment, supporting local enterprise and developing policies that can turn development priorities into commercially and socially viable opportunities.
For investors, the implication is equally significant. Capital will be more effective when it is linked to credible institutions, measurable outcomes and scalable business models.
Dr. Mariarosa Cutillo, Chief of Strategic Partnerships at UNFPA, stressed the importance of connecting finance with partnerships, local ownership and clear outcomes.
Her argument points to a central weakness in many development interventions: funding alone does not guarantee impact.
Capital deployed without strong local institutions, effective implementation mechanisms and community ownership can struggle to achieve sustainable results. Conversely, financing backed by capable local actors and clear accountability structures can create outcomes that endure beyond the life of a particular project.
The Forum therefore placed considerable emphasis on building financing ecosystems rather than pursuing disconnected interventions.
That approach is particularly relevant to Africa because the continent’s development priorities are deeply interconnected.
Energy access influences healthcare and education. Food systems affect household incomes, nutrition and economic stability. Digital infrastructure can influence financial inclusion, entrepreneurship and access to markets. Climate resilience intersects with agriculture, infrastructure, livelihoods and public health.
A financing model that treats these challenges independently risks missing the connections that determine whether development gains can be sustained.
This was also reflected in the intervention of Prof. Oyebanji Oyelaran-Oyeyinka, Chair of the Africa Social Impact Network, who stressed that transformation would depend not merely on the availability of capital, but on how effectively that capital is connected to productive capacity, innovation, institutions and local markets.
His position highlights an important point in Africa’s development debate: finance must ultimately strengthen the productive economy.
Capital that only funds consumption or isolated programmes cannot deliver structural transformation on its own. Development financing becomes more powerful when it supports businesses, improves value chains, creates jobs, strengthens productive capacity and enables communities to participate meaningfully in economic activity.
This is where the private sector becomes particularly important.
Foluso Phillips, Chairman of Philips Consulting Limited, argued that Africa has no shortage of ideas, talent or opportunities. The missing ingredients, he suggested, are stronger institutions, systems and partnerships capable of converting that potential into sustainable economic value.
That proposition places businesses at the centre of the development financing conversation.
Africa’s private sector is not merely a source of capital. It is also a source of entrepreneurship, management expertise, innovation, employment and market access. A financing architecture that excludes or marginalises businesses is therefore unlikely to achieve the scale required to transform economies.
The challenge is to create partnerships in which government provides the enabling environment, investors provide capital, businesses deliver commercially sustainable solutions, development institutions provide expertise and catalytic support, and philanthropy helps address gaps where conventional financing may not immediately flow.
One of the clearest demonstrations of this model at the Forum was the commercial launch of the US$300 million Nigeria Distributed Renewable Energy (DRE) Fund by the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA), Africa50 and Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL).
The Fund is designed to scale distributed renewable energy solutions, including mini-grids and standalone solar systems, to underserved communities and businesses across Nigeria.
Its significance goes beyond the size of the financing commitment.
The initiative demonstrates the practical value of bringing different forms of capital and expertise together around a clearly defined development challenge.
Energy remains a critical enabler of economic activity. Businesses require reliable electricity to operate, healthcare facilities need dependable power, schools require energy to support learning, while households increasingly depend on electricity for communication, commerce and essential services.
Distributed renewable energy therefore has the potential to address an infrastructure deficit while simultaneously creating economic opportunities.
The DRE Fund also demonstrates why partnerships are becoming central to development finance.
Co-managed by NSIA and Africa50, with SEforALL providing energy-access leadership, the initiative combines sovereign investment capacity, infrastructure financing expertise and specialised energy-access knowledge.
That kind of alignment is precisely what Africa’s broader development financing architecture requires.
The continent’s financing challenge is too large for governments alone. Public budgets remain constrained, while development needs continue to expand across energy, healthcare, education, food systems, climate resilience, economic inclusion and human capital development.
Private capital is therefore indispensable.
But private investors also need viable projects, predictable policy environments, credible institutions and mechanisms capable of managing risks.
This creates a shared responsibility.
African governments must strengthen the policy and institutional environment. Investors must look beyond short-term returns and recognise opportunities created by long-term structural transformation. Development institutions must become more effective at using catalytic capital to unlock larger pools of private investment. Philanthropy must increasingly focus on models capable of scaling rather than isolated interventions. And local entrepreneurs must be given access to the finance, markets and expertise required to expand.
Perhaps one of the most important messages emerging from the ASIS Global Action Forum is that African-led solutions must remain at the centre of Africa’s development financing agenda.
The argument is not that international capital is unnecessary. Rather, external financing should increasingly reinforce, rather than replace, local capacity and ownership.
Africa’s entrepreneurs, institutions and communities understand many of the challenges they are trying to solve because they live with those challenges every day. What is often missing is the capital, technical support and partnerships needed to translate local innovation into scalable solutions.
Jay Hein, Chief Executive Officer of Sagamore, underlined this point by stressing the importance of connecting Africa’s homegrown solutions to the resources needed to scale them.
That requires trust, long-term collaboration and a willingness to invest in African-led solutions.
It also requires a shift in mindset among capital providers.
The continent should not be viewed simply as a collection of development problems requiring external intervention. It should increasingly be seen as a marketplace of opportunities where capital can support innovation, enterprise, infrastructure and inclusive growth while delivering measurable social and economic returns.
For Olapeju Ibekwe, Chief Executive Officer of Sterling One Foundation, the significance of the Global Action Forum lies in taking conversations that began in Lagos into a broader global space and connecting Africa’s priorities with a wider pool of capital, expertise and partnerships.
But she also raised a crucial test of the Forum’s relevance: what happens after the meetings end?
That may ultimately be the most important measure of whether the event succeeds.
Development conferences are valuable when they influence policy, unlock investment, create partnerships or lead to concrete implementation. They become less meaningful when commitments remain confined to conference halls.
The launch of the DRE Fund provides an example of the transition from dialogue to implementation. The next challenge is ensuring that similar commitments emerge across other critical sectors.
Africa’s development financing gap will not be closed by one event, one fund or one institution. It will require a sustained ecosystem of domestic resource mobilisation, international investment, blended finance, philanthropy, private-sector participation, institutional reform and stronger African capital markets.
