AfDB President Unveils New African Financial Architecture at AU Summit
African Heads of State and Government welcomed Dr Ould Tah’s strategic direction and endorsed NAFA as a key initiative for the continent’s transformation agenda.
- Country:
- Ivory Coast
The President of the African Development Bank Group, Dr Sidi Ould Tah, has delivered his first-ever official address to the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union, presenting a bold vision for a New African Financial Architecture (NAFA) aimed at transforming Africa’s ability to mobilize and deploy its own resources for development.
Speaking on Sunday 15 February 2026 at the 39th African Union Summit in Addis Ababa, Dr Ould Tah described NAFA as a strategic lever for large-scale resource mobilization and the foundation for a new era of African financial sovereignty.
Dr Ould Tah, who assumed office as the Bank’s ninth President on 1 September 2025, told African leaders that the continent’s challenge is not ambition or planning — but the global financial structures governing risk and capital flows.
“Africa is not lacking in ambition. Agenda 2063 gives us a vision… The problem is not a lack of resources. This is the architecture of risk and capital,” he said.
NAFA: A Shift Toward African Financial Sovereignty
In an action-oriented speech, Dr Ould Tah outlined NAFA as a deliberate reorganization of Africa’s financial systems, designed to move the continent from fragmented approaches to coordinated, large-scale capital deployment.
“NAFA is not a slogan. It is a deliberate reorganization of the way Africa mobilizes, allocates, and deploys its capital for development,” he insisted.
He described the initiative as a shift:
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from fragmentation to coordination
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from isolated transactions to systemic scale
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from dependence on external capital to financial sovereignty
Four Cardinal Points to Drive Africa’s Transformation
Dr Ould Tah explained that NAFA is a pillar of the African Development Bank Group’s new strategic vision, anchored in the Four Cardinal Points, which aim to accelerate delivery of the African Union’s Agenda 2063 priorities.
The Four Cardinal Points will focus on:
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Unleashing African capital, ensuring savings and institutional funds finance Africa’s development
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Rebuilding Africa’s financial sovereignty, strengthening Africa’s role in global financial governance
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Turning Africa’s demographic strength into an economic dividend, supporting youth and women entrepreneurs and building regional value chains
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Building resilient, high-value infrastructure, accelerating industrialization and continental integration
AU Leaders Welcome NAFA and Request Update Within Six Months
African Heads of State and Government welcomed Dr Ould Tah’s strategic direction and endorsed NAFA as a key initiative for the continent’s transformation agenda.
In an official statement adopted at the Summit, leaders congratulated him on his election, calling it a reflection of his ability to steer the continent’s leading development finance institution toward deeper integration and growth.
The Assembly also requested an update within the next six months on the operationalization of NAFA.
Summit Focus: Water and Sanitation for Agenda 2063
The two-day AU Summit, held on 14–15 February, was convened under the theme:
“Ensuring the sustainable availability of safe water and sanitation systems to achieve the goals of Agenda 2063.”
During the Summit, the President of Burundi, Évariste Ndayishimiye, was elected Chairperson of the African Union for 2026, replacing Angolan President João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço.
A New Era for Africa’s Development Financing
Dr Ould Tah’s address marked a defining moment for the African Development Bank’s next chapter, positioning NAFA as a cornerstone initiative to unlock Africa’s own wealth, strengthen financial independence, and accelerate continental development.
With strong endorsement from AU leaders, NAFA is now set to move from vision to implementation — reshaping Africa’s financial future at scale.
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