Despite significant economic progress over the last two decades, African policy makers still face a
significant challenge in mobilizing resources to finance development. Government budgets have increased thanks to a number of factors, including debt relief, improvement in revenue collection, gains from the commodity price boom, growth in strategic sectors, and fledgling industrialization. However, tax mobilization remains low despite significant efforts and recent reforms in many countries. To realize its aspirations under Agenda 2063 and become “The Africa We Want”,
the continent will require more, and better, financing. Therefore, all sources of finance will need to be weighed up—including public and private, official development assistance (ODA) and foreign direct investment (FDI), domestic and external—to determine the optimal financing mechanisms to accelerate the continent’s development. The forum sought to provide a platform to critically
discuss the prospects for increased, improved and effective financing for Africa’s transformation. The three main objectives of the forum were to: Understand the current and emerging context for financing Africa’s development; share successes and failures in national, regional and continental attempts to address specific financing challenges; Provide recommendations for critical areas
where interventions will lead to unlocking increased financing for Africa’s development.
