Mobilising Capital to Bridge Africa’s Infrastructure Gap
In early November 2025, the African Development Bank Group (AfDB) approved a US$100 million loan to the Emerging Africa and Asia Infrastructure Fund (EAAIF), a debt-fund managed by Ninety One under the Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG). The financing is targeted at high-impact
infrastructure sectors—renewable energy, digital connectivity, transport and logistics—that are critical for inclusive growth and climate resilience across sub-Saharan Africa. It represents the AfDB’s strategic shift toward mobilising private capital rather than relying solely on direct concessional funding.
From Financing Instrument to Industrial Catalyst
The loan forms part of EAAIF’s broader objective to raise US$300 million in long-term debt during 2025 and deploy more than US$850 million in infrastructure across Africa and Asia by 2027. By supporting this fund, the AfDB is leveraging its credit and institutional capacity to de-risk projects and unlock private- sector participation in geographies often perceived as frontier or high-risk. The mechanism signals a move from project-by-project funding toward platform-based investment vehicles that scale across sectors and countries.
Strategic Implications for Africa’s Development Path
For African policy-makers and investors, this deal underscores a growing recognition that infrastructure is more than hardware—it is a development lever. By channeling financing into transport, energy and digital systems together, rather than in isolation, the initiative aims to build the backbone for productivity gains, industrial diversification and region-wide connectivity. As Mike Salawou of AfDB stated: the partnership “unlocks long-term financing for critical projects that power economies, create jobs and improve lives.” With Africa’s infrastructure deficit estimated at hundreds of billions of dollars annually, scalable blended- finance models like EAAIF may become the blueprint for progress.