Korea and AfDB Deepen Partnership to Turn Africa’s Potential Into Jobs

The KOAFEC Trust Fund has become the Bank Group’s largest active bilateral trust fund since its launch in 2006, with South Korean contributions reaching $132.82 million as of May 31, 2026.

South Korea and the African Development Bank Group have signed a letter of intent to strengthen cooperation on Africa's development, putting investment preparation, infrastructure and emerging technologies at the centre of their partnership. The agreement was signed in Seoul on September 9, 2026, by Bank President Dr Sidi Ould Tah and South Korea's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance and Economy, Koo Yun-cheol, during the Ministerial Conference of the Korea-Africa Economic Cooperation Forum (KOAFEC).

The agreement builds on twenty years of cooperation through KOAFEC and sets out plans to strengthen the trust fund that helps African countries prepare investments, develop institutional skills and access specialist advice. For countries seeking to turn development priorities into projects that investors can support, this preparatory work provides an important link between identifying a need and securing the resources to address it.

Turning Project Ideas Into Investment

The KOAFEC Trust Fund has become the Bank Group's largest active bilateral trust fund since its launch in 2006, with South Korean contributions reaching $132.82 million as of May 31, 2026. Approximately $50 million allocated to technical assistance and project preparation has helped support more than 40 investment operations and programmes worth over $6 billion, drawing in at least $4 billion in additional funding. Those figures show the role that early technical support can play in helping projects attract larger investments.

Cooperation under the new agreement will extend to Korea's Economic Development Cooperation Fund, the government's main channel for concessional development loans, established in 1987. The partners intend to use this relationship to support infrastructure projects with the potential to attract further public and private investment. Resilient infrastructure, climate resilience and critical minerals are among the priorities, connecting the need for reliable development foundations with opportunities to build more competitive African industries.

Bringing Technology Into Everyday Economic Life

Artificial intelligence and digital technologies will have a central place in the partnership, with joint initiatives intended to help African countries improve productivity, business competitiveness and public service delivery. The proposed cooperation includes applied research, knowledge-sharing, training for public decision-makers and digital skills development, recognising that access to new technology needs to be matched by the ability to use it effectively. These measures connect technological change with the practical needs of institutions, businesses and workers.

Ould Tah described the agreement as a partnership built around investment, innovation and stronger value chains, expressing confidence that cooperation could deliver benefits beyond individual projects. "I firmly believe that, together, we can transform Africa's opportunities into projects that drive growth, create jobs and bring shared prosperity," he said. Closer ties between Korean and African businesses form part of that approach, placing private sector cooperation alongside public financing and technical support.

Building on Support for African Businesses

The trust fund's existing record includes support for more than 1,300 African start-ups and entrepreneurs, benefits for over 1,200 businesses and a contribution to the creation of more than 5,000 jobs across the continent. That experience gives the expanded partnership a practical foundation, with business development and employment already featuring in its work. The letter of intent sets a direction for deeper cooperation, with the partners committing to develop joint initiatives and mobilise further finance, knowledge and innovation.

The agreement aligns with the Bank Group's Ten-Year Strategy for 2024–2033 and its priorities of unlocking African finance, strengthening financial sovereignty, creating opportunities for young people and building resilient infrastructure and competitive value chains. It also supports the New African Financial Architecture for Development, underpinned by the April 2026 Abidjan Consensus. Korea's membership of the African Development Fund since 1980 and the African Development Bank since 1982 provides the wider institutional foundation for this next phase of cooperation.