Africa must take greater control of its economic future by putting the continent’s own financial institutions at the centre of development financing, Kenyan President William Ruto said. Addressing the 25th Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) summit in Harare, Zimbabwe, Ruto noted that African countries hold more than US$4 trillion in domestic financial assets, yet much of that money remains overseas while projects at home struggle to attract funding.
Ruto urged governments to place their reserves with African institutions, back their bonds and guarantees, and direct a larger share of development projects through them. He also called for deeper regional trade, the removal of commercial barriers and the development of stronger value chains as protectionist policies gain ground around the world.
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Pointing to Kenya’s own support for African financial institutions, Ruto said a planned US$16 billion refinery in East Africa would be financed almost entirely by institutions from the continent. He handed COMESA’s chairmanship to Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa and said regional integration must produce concrete improvements in the lives of citizens.
