Africa and France are set to redefine their long‑standing relationship at a major summit in Nairobi, with the two sides shifting away from the traditional donor‑recipient model toward a more balanced partnership in artificial intelligence, green industry, and international financial‑system reform.

The “Africa Forward Summit 2026,” co‑organized by Kenya and France, will take place in Nairobi on May 11 and 12. Announced last week in Addis Ababa, the summit marks a significant departure from the historically francophone‑centric framework of Franco‑African ties, with Nairobi chosen as the first English‑speaking African host city for such a high‑level France‑Africa dialogue.

The summit will be co‑chaired by Kenyan President William Ruto and French President Emmanuel Macron and is positioning itself as a milestone in the broader push to reshape the global financial architecture so that it better serves African economies. The main theme, “Reform of the International Financial Architecture,” underscores the urgency of mobilizing sustainable financing, reducing Africa’s dependence on debt‑driven models, and increasing the continent’s voice in global financial decision‑making.

At a briefing in Addis Ababa, Galma Mukhe Boru, Kenyan Ambassador to Ethiopia and the African Union, described the initiative as a response to contemporary global realities. “This initiative is aimed at responding to today’s global realities by building practical partnerships that bring visible results,” he said. The summit is expected to conclude with the adoption of the “Nairobi Declaration,” which will outline a joint roadmap for Africa‑France cooperation on finance, climate action, and economic sovereignty.

French Ambassador to Ethiopia and the African Union Alexis Lamek framed the event as a signal of changing dynamics. “This summit is a significant indicator that the relationship between France and African countries has changed,” he said. Unlike earlier formats focused largely on unilateral aid, Lamek emphasized that the Nairobi summit is designed to deliver “tangible and mutual benefits” in areas such as green industry, digital innovation, and health self‑sufficiency.

The summit will also highlight Africa’s growing digital and entrepreneurial landscape. More than 400 young entrepreneurs, artists, and digital influencers from across the continent have been invited, including Ethiopians such as Kit Dut, founder of “Assam AI,” an artificial intelligence platform that provides translation services, and digital artist Fanuel from Qadamawi Studio.

A dedicated business forum, to be held at the University of Nairobi on May 11, will bring together more than 1,500 CEOs, investors, and innovators. Organizers hope the event will help transform Franco‑African ties from a donor‑recipient relationship into a model of mutual investment, particularly in the digital economy and local manufacturing for the health sector.

Ambassador Lamek stressed that the international system must work more equitably for all countries, not just wealthy ones. “The international system must work equally for everyone, not just for wealthy countries,” he said. By positioning the summit as a “living bridge” between Africa and the G7, France and its African partners aim to ensure that African voices have a prominent role in shaping global discussions on finance, climate change, and trade.

Airlines, airports, and African governments gathered in Addis Ababa this week under a clear message from the International Air Transport Association (IATA): aviation is not a luxury, it is a strategic pillar of long‑term economic growth that must be prioritized, not taxed to death.

Speaking at IATA’s Focus Africa Conference, Kamil Alawadhi, Regional Vice President for Africa and the Middle East, laid out what he described as a “strategy for aviation in Africa.” The core argument was that well‑managed air transport can drive trade, tourism, regional integration, and job creation far more effectively than the narrow revenues governments collect from airline tickets and charges. “Aviation is economic infrastructure for Africa,” he said. “Its value lies in the long‑term benefits it delivers.”

A Continent Ready to Take Off

The timing of the call is no accident. Across Africa, air travel demand is climbing steadily, with the continent’s aviation market projected to grow at roughly 4.1 percent per year over the next two decades, effectively doubling by 2044. In 2023, air transport already contributed about 75 billion US dollars to Africa’s GDP and supported some 8.1 million jobs, according to IATA‑Oxford Economics data.

Ethiopia, host of the conference, illustrates the potential. IATA’s Value of Air Transport report for the country estimates that aviation supports about 2 billion US dollars in economic activity, equivalent to 1.2 percent of GDP, and around 527,000 jobs across the wider economy, including tourism and supply chains. With passenger numbers projected to triple by 2044 and 60 percent of the population under 25, the country sees aviation as a key lever to turn demographic momentum into productive jobs and skills.

Safety at the Core

None of this growth can be sustained without a strong safety foundation. While Africa has made progress—aviation accident rates fell from 12.13 to 7.86 per million sectors between 2024 and 2025—the region still lags the global average of 1.32 and remains the highest among all regions.

To address the gap, IATA is urging governments and regulators to deepen implementation of International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs). Effective implementation across 46 sub‑Saharan African states currently stands at about 60 percent, below the global average of roughly 69 percent and the 75 percent target. The association also pressed for faster, more transparent accident investigations, highlighting that only 19 percent of accident reports were published between 2019 and 2023, compared with a 63 percent global average.

Greater use of safety audit programs such as IATA’s Operational Safety Audit (IOSA), IATA Safety Audit for Ground Operations (ISAGO), and the Collaborative Aviation Safety Improvement Program (CASIP) was presented as a way to strengthen airline performance, aid regulators, and promote a more consistent, risk‑based approach across the continent.

Cost, Competitiveness, and “Blocked” Funds

Beyond safety, several structural issues are holding back connectivity and investment. IATA pointed out that the cost of doing aviation business in Africa is about 15 percent higher than the global average, driven largely by taxes, charges, and regulatory burdens.persfin.

Of particular concern are passenger data charges such as the API‑PNR fee, which in some countries reaches levels far above global norms. Tanzania, for example, levies an API‑PNR charge of 45 US dollars one‑way—among the highest in the world—while Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nigeria, Ghana, and Kenya also exceed international benchmarks. These fees, the association argues, distort ticket pricing, reduce affordability, and weaken connectivity, contravening ICAO’s own guidance.

Another longstanding issue is the repatriation of airline revenues. Despite international agreements that allow airlines to transfer funds earned in African markets, billions of dollars remain “blocked.” IATA reported that African countries account for the largest share of globally blocked airline revenues, with 774 million US dollars stranded as of March 2026. Algeria tops the list with 258 million US dollars tied up, followed by the XAF monetary zone, Mozambique, Eritrea, and Angola.persfin.

Alawadhi warned that the situation is not only a financial irritant but a threat to connectivity. If airlines cannot repatriate earnings, they may cut frequencies or suspend routes altogether. Algeria, he said, urgently needs to act, noting that repeated engagement with trade and central‑bank authorities has yielded limited results.

Easing the Rules of the Game

For Alawadhi, aviation will not thrive unless “doing business” becomes genuinely easier. Two issues stood out at the conference: visa requirements and corporate taxation.

Nearly half of all intra‑African travel still requires visas obtained before departure, which suppresses regional mobility, tourism, and economic integration. IATA highlighted that countries and regions that have eased visa rules have seen stronger tourism flows, more resilient routes, and greater use of regional air services. The argument mirrors wider African Union efforts to advance the African Single Air Transport Market (SAATM) and reduce barriers to movement across borders.

On taxation, the association urged governments to preserve residence‑based corporate taxation for airlines rather than moving toward source‑based regimes under UN tax discussions. Because aviation is inherently cross‑border, taxing a single ticket across multiple jurisdictions risks double or even multiple taxation. IATA views residence‑based taxation—where airlines pay corporate tax at their headquarters—as simpler, fairer, and more aligned with the sector’s operational reality.

Sustainability and Energy Security

As the world shifts toward greener aviation, IATA is positioning Africa as more than a passenger: it can also be a supplier of climate solutions. The association highlighted the continent’s potential in the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA), which relies on Eligible Emission Units (EEUs) to help airlines offset emissions.persfin.

Sub‑Saharan Africa, it said, could make up to 57.6 million EEUs available to airlines, turning carbon markets into a source of climate finance. Yet only a handful of countries—among them Tanzania, Malawi, Rwanda, Gambia, Sierra Leone, Madagascar, and Nigeria—have begun entering this space.

Even more striking is the region’s potential for Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF). IATA’s global feedstock assessment suggests that sub‑Saharan Africa could supply up to 106 million tonnes of SAF‑suitable feedstock by 2050, drawn from agricultural residues, forestry waste, municipal solid waste, and selected energy crops on degraded land. To turn this potential into reality, the association called for predictable, incentive‑based policies and investment in collection and processing infrastructure that can scale beyond the roughly 1.5 million tonnes of announced renewable‑fuel capacity today.persfin.

Ethiopia’s 20‑Year Aviation Horizon

For Ethiopia specifically, the message is that the moment to invest is now. IATA’s projections show the country’s air passenger demand tripling by 2044, driven by population growth, rising incomes, and the country’s strategic role as both a tourism destination and an aviation hub.

The association outlined three key priorities for Addis Ababa: building cost‑efficient infrastructure, especially at the upcoming Bishoftu airport and related facilities; expanding training and capacity building through institutions like Ethiopian Aviation University; and embedding sustainability into the sector’s growth path. With Ethiopia estimated to hold around 16.1 million CORSIA‑eligible emission units, the country could position itself as a notable player in global carbon markets while aligning its aviation expansion with the industry’s 2050 net‑zero goal.

At the closing of the Focus Africa Conference, IATA’s core plea was for African governments to treat aviation as a long‑term enabler, not a short‑term cash cow. The data suggests that every dollar invested in safe, affordable, well‑connected air transport multiplies across tourism, trade, and downstream services. Whether the continent can fully capture that value, the association warned, will depend less on the number of new routes and more on the political will to reduce costs, unblock funds, and align regulations with the sector’s cross‑border reality.

As Ethiopia races to close widening gaps in water, sanitation, and hygiene infrastructure, the international organization Aqua for All is calling on the government to establish a clear, strong policy framework that can unlock private‑sector participation in the WASH sector.

The Netherlands‑based nonprofit argues that traditional funding models, which rely heavily on government budgets and foreign aid, are no longer enough to meet Ethiopia’s 2030 development goals. To reach universal access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation, Aqua for All says the government must treat the private sector not as a side partner but as a central pillar of the WASH ecosystem.

Hzekiel Aynalem, Aqua for All’s WASH Finance Program Manager and Country Representative for Ethiopia, told reporters that while the country has made progress in expanding water coverage, current efforts move too slowly to achieve the ultimate target of 100 percent public access. “If we want to reach 100 percent community benefit at the required speed, the private sector must play its role,” he said.

Ethiopia, he noted, has seen rapid transformation in sectors such as telecoms, finance, and renewable energy, but the WASH sector has remained largely stagnant by comparison. He described it as an “untapped market” whose profitability is still under‑recognized due to the absence of clear incentives, coherent regulation, and visible success stories for investors.

“There have been gaps in showing the private sector what can be gained from this market,” Hzekiel said. “Our goal now is to bridge that gap and show that the water and sanitation sector can be a profitable and sustainable business environment.”

The financing challenge is substantial. Data indicate that Ethiopia faces an annual funding gap of about 1.14 billion US dollars to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 6 (SDG 6). Relying only on the traditional “3Ts” model—taxes, tariffs, and transfers—is widely seen as insufficient to keep pace with population growth and urbanization.

Aqua for All is pushing for “market‑led” solutions that can move away from the 40‑year legacy of donor‑driven, grant‑heavy projects where communities contribute little and sustainability is often in doubt. The organization argues that the government cannot fill the gap alone with its limited fiscal space.

Financial institutions, however, have long regarded WASH investments as high‑risk, in part because they are dealing with public services where revenues are unpredictable and governance standards vary. To counter that perception, Aqua for All is working to build investor confidence through innovative financing and risk‑sharing structures.

“We don’t just provide direction; we share the risk,” Hzekiel said. By combining grant capital, technical support, and innovative financial instruments, the organization aims to make the sector more attractive to commercial banks and microfinance institutions.

A flagship example is a 400 million birr loan facility established in partnership with Bunna Bank, which has become the first private bank in Ethiopia to launch a dedicated credit line for water and sanitation projects. Aqua for All contributed grant capital to cover part of the risk, allowing the bank to lend to microfinance institutions and WASH‑focused businesses. Those institutions, in turn, on‑lend to households and small entrepreneurs for water connections, sanitation upgrades, and small‑scale service delivery.

The facility, which is scheduled to operate until 2030, is expected to reach at least 134,000 people in its second phase alone, helping to expand access to clean water and basic sanitation in underserved urban and peri‑urban areas.

Despite such local successes, Aqua for All stresses that broader, systemic change will require a national policy mandate. The organization has worked with the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Water and Energy to develop a WASH Financing Strategy, but it says turning that strategy into enforceable policy and detailed implementation guidelines is now essential.

The upcoming One WASH National Program (Phase 3) is expected to place greater emphasis on private‑sector participation, including opportunities for public‑private partnerships and blended financing. Yet Aqua for All believes the government must go a step further by sending a clear, high‑level signal that the private sector is not only welcome but is central to the future of the WASH sector.

“We believe there needs to be a stronger and more specific direction from the government regarding the private sector,” Hzekiel urged. “When policies and strategies are supportive, the confidence of financial institutions to invest increases.”

Africa’s climate and development debate is shifting from promises to delivery, with leaders at the 12th African Regional Forum on Sustainable Development (ARFSD-12) calling for a stronger focus on implementation, financing, and accountability as the continent prepares for COP32.

At the heart of the discussions in Addis Ababa this week was a blunt message: Africa does not lack ambition. What it lacks is a global and domestic system capable of delivering climate and development commitments at the scale required. That concern ran through the 7th Africa Climate Talks, where Claver Gatete, Executive Secretary of the UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), said the world’s climate response is falling behind the urgency of the crisis and that trust is eroding because commitments are too often not matched by action.

Gatete said the global climate system is under strain just as climate impacts are intensifying faster than responses. Emissions cuts remain insufficient to keep the world on track for the 1.5 degrees Celsius target, while finance for vulnerable regions continues to lag far behind promises made in successive negotiations. For Africa, the stakes are especially high. The continent contributes less than 4 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, yet it faces worsening droughts, floods, rising seas, and unpredictable weather that are already disrupting food production, water supply, infrastructure, and public finances.

The financing gap is one of the most glaring challenges. African countries need an estimated 277 billion US dollars a year through 2030 to implement their nationally determined contributions, yet the continent receives only about 11 percent of the funding required. Gatete argued that Africa should not be defined only by its vulnerability. The continent also holds some of the most important climate solutions, including abundant renewable energy resources, biodiversity for nature-based action, and a young population capable of driving innovation, green growth, and new forms of industrial development.

That broader vision is shaping Africa’s approach to COP32, which Ethiopia is preparing to host in 2027. Leaders in Addis Ababa said the conference must not become another stage for pledges without delivery. Instead, it should be an implementation-focused summit built around measurable outcomes, stronger finance tracking, and accountability systems that can close the gap between ambition and action. The call is for climate finance to move from commitment to deployment, with adaptation given far greater priority than it has received so far.

Adaptation is increasingly being framed not as a side issue, but as a core development priority for Africa. For countries facing climate shocks, investing in resilient agriculture, infrastructure, early warning systems, and water security is essential to protecting lives and sustaining growth. Yet adaptation remains underfunded, undertracked, and often excluded from the kind of predictable financing that could make a lasting difference. Gatete said even low-cost tools such as early warning systems are still not widely available across the continent.

Water emerged as one of the most powerful themes of the forum. In a high-level session on clean water and sanitation, Gatete said water must be treated not only as a basic human need but as critical economic infrastructure. He noted that water underpins health, food systems, energy production, cities, industry, and regional integration. That framing reflected growing concern that water insecurity is no longer an isolated challenge, but a systemic risk that can slow industrialization, strain public health systems, and deepen inequality.

The numbers show both progress and persistent gaps. Since 2015, nearly 300 million Africans have gained access to basic drinking water and close to 190 million to basic sanitation. But only 40 percent of Africans currently have access to safely managed drinking water, while just 30 percent have safely managed sanitation. In 2024, more than 200 million people still practiced open defecation, a situation that carries serious consequences for health, productivity, and dignity. Gatete said Africa’s industrial future depends on securing its water base, pointing out that hydropower, thermal energy, green hydrogen, agro-processing, mining, and manufacturing all rely on reliable water systems.

Climate change is making the problem worse. More frequent droughts, floods, and hydrological variability are intensifying stress on already fragile systems, while rapid urbanization is stretching services in many cities beyond capacity. Informal settlements remain especially vulnerable, with weak sanitation and poor water access compounding health and economic risks. The pressure is not only environmental but financial, and speakers at the forum said Africa needs about 64 billion US dollars annually to achieve water security and universal sanitation, far above current investment levels.

Across the forum, the financing debate remained central. Speakers said Africa’s development ambitions are being constrained not by a lack of ideas, but by the scale, cost, and structure of available finance. High borrowing costs, limited concessional resources, and a global financial architecture that often penalizes African countries are making it harder to invest in climate resilience, infrastructure, and social development. The region’s cost of capital remains too high, while domestic resource mobilization and public financial management systems continue to face serious constraints.

Panelists called for more blended finance, debt-for-climate swaps, risk-sharing mechanisms, and better project preparation so that African countries can build pipelines of bankable investments. They also pointed to the need for stronger public-private partnerships and more credible data systems to improve confidence and attract capital. Discussions highlighted examples from Rwanda, where climate resilience has been more tightly linked to national planning, as well as debt-for-development swap initiatives in Senegal, The Gambia, and Ghana. These were presented as examples of how innovative finance can help expand fiscal space and support long-term investments.

The private sector also featured prominently in the debate, with sessions at the forum emphasizing that public resources alone will not be enough to deliver the Sustainable Development Goals. Leaders said the private sector must be seen not only as a source of capital, but as a driver of jobs, technology, and industrial transformation. But to mobilize that capital at scale, Africa needs clear rules, stronger institutions, better pipelines, and partnerships that can turn promising ideas into investable projects.

As the forum drew to a close, the message was clear: Africa is ready to lead, but it needs a financial system and a climate regime that deliver at the same pace. With Ethiopia preparing to host COP32, the continent is positioning itself to push for a more credible climate agenda rooted in implementation, justice, and measurable results. For Africa, the test ahead is not whether it can make the case for action. It is whether the world will finally help turn that case into delivery.