The history of industrial development is synonymous with that of energy. The industrial revolution was heralded by the use of coal as a fuel that improved the fate of nations and their populations. With the advent of petroleum and hydrocarbon use, many more countries and corporations were able to create astounding amounts of wealth. Africa is a significant participant in this narrative, albeit in a more secondary role. Africa’s story is one of abundance and, as we enter the era of decarbonization, the continent is endowed with critical minerals, sunshine, large rivers, forests and grasslands. All of these are key ingredients in the Fourth Industrial Revolution, powered by clean energy. The role of the business community is now more important than ever in order to complement Governments’ efforts at economic empowerment and create an environment that enables the public and private sectors to achieve the United Nations 2030 Agenda for sustainable development for all and the African Union’s Agenda 2063 goal of wealth creation.
The Agenda 2063 financing strategy is articulated around three dimensions: (a) domestic resource mobilization; (b) intermediation of resources into investment and (c) access to finance facilitation, including through project development funds, viability gap funding, capitalization funds and bankability and investment-readiness support for projects, firms/SMEs, entrepreneurs and other parties.
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