Africa50, the infrastructure investment fund backed by the African Development Bank, aims to more than double its project portfolio by 2031, targeting a $20 billion asset base across 32 countries. The announcement comes as sub-Saharan Africa continues to struggle to attract the private capital its development requires.
A $20 Billion Bet
Africa50 currently holds a portfolio of approximately $9 billion spread across more than 30 projects in 32 African countries. The announced objective is to bring this figure to $20 billion by 2031 — in just over five years. This ambition, revealed by Reuters on September 9, 2026, underlines the growing weight of what is becoming the continent's leading pan-African infrastructure investment vehicle.
Priority sectors are power generation — notably in Cameroon, Kenya and Madagascar — and data centres, driven by rapidly growing demand for digital connectivity across sub-Saharan Africa.
A Continent With a Chronic Deficit
Context explains the urgency. According to the African Development Bank, Africa faces an annual infrastructure financing gap estimated at $170 billion. The continent currently attracts only 5% of global infrastructure investment, while public investment represents barely half the 7%-of-GDP threshold recommended by the United Nations for sustainable development.
This equation is particularly critical for the island and coastal economies of the Indian Ocean, whose competitiveness depends directly on the quality of their energy, digital and port connections.
The Indian Ocean in Africa's Equation
Madagascar is explicitly listed among the countries targeted by Africa50 for energy investment. That inclusion is a strong signal: the island holds considerable electricity-generation potential — hydroelectric, solar, geothermal — that remains vastly under-exploited, with an electricity access rate of around 20%, one of the lowest on the continent.
For the Seychelles, Mauritius or Réunion, the development of data centre infrastructure in East Africa also represents an opportunity to position themselves as regional hubs for rapidly growing data and service flows.
Why It Matters
An under-equipped continent is a continent that cannot grow. Africa50's ambition goes beyond a simple financial target: it is about demonstrating that Africa can finance its own infrastructure, by mobilising local savings and regional institutional capital. For Indian Ocean economies, this structural shift opens new markets, reduces energy costs, and strengthens the attractiveness of free zones and industrial parks. The money is starting to follow the projects.
Source: Semafor / Reuters, 9 September 2026.