NAIROBI, Kenya, Sept 15 – More than 300 policymakers, regulators, investors and development finance leaders from over 20 African countries are meeting in Nairobi to explore ways of directing more domestic capital towards development and climate projects.
The discussions are taking place at the third Sustainable Capital Markets Conference organised by FSD Africa and its partners.
African institutional investors, including pension funds, insurers, banks and sovereign wealth funds, manage an estimated $4 trillion, but only 2.7% of these assets are invested in infrastructure and other productive sectors.
The conference will focus on how more of this money can be invested in infrastructure, energy, climate resilience, businesses and job-creating sectors as foreign funding slows and governments face rising debt costs.
FSD Africa said African domestic equity markets have grown 27-fold since 2000 to $561 billion. However, the continent’s share of global capital market activity has declined.
The conference will also address the limited use of corporate bonds.
Fewer than half of African countries have had a domestic company issue a corporate bond since 2000.
Key areas of discussion include sustainable finance, blended finance, sovereign debt management, institutional investment and new financing models.
The organisers also plan to develop an Africa Capital Markets Roadmap outlining actions to strengthen capital markets across the continent.
Another proposed roadmap will focus on mobilising domestic capital through public-private partnerships, regulatory reforms and new investment vehicles.
The conference will also seek ways to increase institutional investment in infrastructure, climate projects, energy transition, MSMEs and other productive sectors.
