Financial institutions are in support of Africa as the continent is attempting to attract investment and deal with existing infrastructure backlogs, said Akinwumi Adesina, President of the African Development Bank (AfDB) on Wednesday.
Speaking at the start of Africa Investment Forum in Johannesburg, the AfDB president said that despite the problems the continent is grappling with, it has so much to offer to investors.
"Africa has huge amounts of resources, mineral resources, oil and agriculture. We want to unlock Africa' potential. We as financial institutions are backing Africa as an investable destination," he said.
Five of the 10 fastest growing economies in the world are in Africa, Adesina noted.
"Invest in Africa. We are going to be a huge market. We need to get the necessary infrastructure in place. We need to fast track Africa's development," he said.
Adesina said that reforms including regulatory frame work and policy changes implemented in a number of African countries over the years will make doing business in Africa more conducive.
Adesina expressed belief that the ongoing investment forum will be used to establish long-term investment projects that will improve Africa.
Investment projects and deals worth billions of dollars are expected to be announced at the event.
"This forum is to create a platform that will allow the development of bankable projects and that will allow prospective investors to be able to reduce the costs of transactions," he said. "What we are trying to do is to get stable and long term bankable and profitable investments in Africa."
The three-day investment forum, which is attended by several African heads of state, will end on Friday.
(Source: Xinhua)
