Africa has faced an annual financing gap of $1.3 trillion to meet the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Claver Gatete, Executive Secretary of the UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), has said.
Speaking at the side event at the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4), in Seville, Spain on Monday, Gatete said the global SDG financing shortfall stands at $4 trillion annually.
He said despite Africa’s vast potential, access to affordable, long-term finance remains elusive.
Gatete said although Africa is rich in renewable energy, arable land and human capital, it has been facing long-standing structural challenges and a fragmented financing architecture.
According to the executive secretary, the Economic Commission for Africa is advancing practical solutions to bridge this divide through innovative financing instruments, citing a debt-for-nature-and-industrialization swap it launched in DRC, linking debt relief to investment in battery and EV value chains.
He recommended for bringing countries and partners together to enhance access to climate finance, reduce borrowing costs and strengthen fiscal resilience across the continent.
Gatete said African countries need to strengthen their platforms and policy coherence to build investor confidence and de-risk capital flows and direct investment toward bankable, high-impact projects.
The executive secretary urged African countries to work with development finance institutions, philanthropic partners and platforms like convergence to mobilise commercial capital while mitigating risk.
“We believe it is imperative that Africa builds resilience from within, even as we seek global solidarity,” said the executive secretary, emphasising that Africa must deepen domestic financial markets and improve sovereign credit ratings to meet the SDGs.
MG/as/APA