Africa faces infrastructure financing gap as Benin secures €500 million

Africa is currently facing an infrastructure financing gap estimated between $68 billion and $108 billion, according to reports from the African Development Bank. At the 27th EACE Convention in Addis Ababa, experts highlighted that the continent must build as much infrastructure in the next 25 years as it has over the last century, while also addressing critical shortages in skilled engineers.

In Benin, the government has secured €500 million in international bank financing to fund priority investments in sectors including education, health, water access, renewable energy, and agriculture. This 12-year financing arrangement utilizes an innovative credit enhancement mechanism involving a partial credit guarantee from the African Development Fund and second-loss insurance from the Islamic Development Bank Group.

In Ethiopia, the construction sector is projected to grow by 7.7% annually through 2029. However, academic experts have noted that the focus is shifting from the volume of construction to the quality, safety, and resilience of new infrastructure projects.