AfDB, UK Export Finance Sign Deal to Mobilise Funding for African Projects

October 24, 2026 | By Semahegn Nigatu

The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) and UK Export Finance have signed a framework agreement to expand co-financing for infrastructure and other development projects across Africa, combining development finance with export credit to mobilise additional capital.

The agreement was signed on October 21 in Conakry, Guinea, by Abdul Kamara, officer in charge of the AfDB Group’s vice-presidency, and Tim Reid, chief executive of UK Export Finance, on the sidelines of the fifth UK-West and Central Francophone Africa Trade and Investment Forum.

The institutions said the memorandum of understanding would establish a framework for identifying, assessing and developing joint financing opportunities for sovereign and private-sector operations in the bank’s regional member countries. It is the first framework agreement between the two institutions.

Priority areas include energy, infrastructure, water and sanitation, healthcare, digital infrastructure, critical minerals, supply chain resilience, agriculture and trade finance.

The partnership will combine the AfDB’s development finance instruments with UK Export Finance’s financing and insurance facilities to support projects requiring additional capital. The institutions did not disclose a financial commitment or a target for the volume of funding expected under the agreement.

“Africa’s financing needs call for partnerships that bring additional capital to the continent at scale,” Kamara said, adding that the agreement would provide a structured framework for cooperation and create opportunities to finance infrastructure and investment.

Reid said the partnership would help the institutions expand co-financing for infrastructure, energy and trade priorities by combining their financial instruments and expertise.

The agreement supports the AfDB Group’s efforts to mobilise financing under its Four Cardinal Points strategic priorities.

The partnership builds on the United Kingdom’s longstanding relationship with the bank. The UK joined the African Development Fund in 1973 and became a member of the African Development Bank in 1983. It remains a major contributor to the African Development Fund, the group’s concessional financing arm.

Established in 1919, UK Export Finance is the British government’s export credit agency. It provides financing and insurance to support UK businesses exporting overseas, including through transactions linked to international infrastructure and development projects.

Source: FSX Business News