By: ThinkBusiness Africa
The 2025 Africa Investment Forum (AIF) Market Days just concluded in Rabat, Morocco, securing a massive $15.3 billion in investment interest across 39 bankable projects. Africa Development Bank (AfDB) said in a statement on Sunday
The successful three-day event, held under the theme “Bridging the Gap: Mobilising Private Capital to Unlock Africa’s Full Potential,” showcased a rapidly growing global appetite for African investment opportunities.
Sidi Ould Tah AfDB president announced the impressive outcome at the close of the event, stating, “The conclusion of the Africa Investment Forum’s 2025 Market Days marks a new beginning, full of optimism, for the future of our continent.”
This year’s Forum drew financial backing from 32 global private-sector organizations, twice the number recorded in 2024 – cementing AIF’s status as a premier marketplace for large-scale investment across Africa.
Over 2,000 delegates representing private capital providers, investment banks, multilateral development finance institutions, entrepreneurs, and government officials from nearly 80 countries attended. Notably, Japan sent a delegation of almost 100 participants.
President Tah attributed the strong investor response to the robust financial models and thorough social and environmental impact studies supporting the tabled projects. Approximately two-thirds of the proposed transactions targeted the critical energy and transport sectors, highlighting the continent’s infrastructure needs and potential.
A major transport project that advanced significantly at the AIF was the Ethiopian Airlines Group’s (EAG) push to finance the Bishoftu International Airport (BIA), a flagship mega-project valued at approximately $12.5 billion.
Located 40 kilometers southwest of Addis Ababa, the new greenfield airport is designed to ease congestion at Bole International Airport and, when fully completed, will handle up to 110 million passengers annually, positioning it as Africa’s largest aviation hub.
The AfDB is already appointed as the Initial Mandated Lead Arranger (IMLA) for the project, which aims for a Phase One completion by 2030 with an initial capacity of 60 million passengers, transforming Ethiopia into a critical gateway connecting the continent to the world.
The AfDB President unveiled new measures to rigorously track project progress. The AIF will introduce an annual dashboard to monitor the rate at which investment interest successfully converts into actual, on-the-ground investment.
Discussions throughout the Market Days also centered on project structuring, capital mobilization, and critical issues like women’s access to finance. The opening plenary featured a high-level ministerial dialogue dedicated to accelerating private investment through a conducive enabling environment.
“The conclusion of the Africa Investment Forum’s 2025 Market Days marks a new beginning, full of optimism, for the future of our continent,” Tah said.
Created in 2018, the Africa Investment Forum has become a multidisciplinary platform connecting investors and project developers. With design to support projects until they achieve bankability and expedite the resources used in financing the projects.
