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US Investors to Explore Opportunities in AfCFTA

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US Investors Opportunities in AfCFTA

By Kester Kenn Klomegah

United States investors are looking to explore the several opportunities in the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), a policy signed by African countries to make the continent a single market.

Speaking at the 13th US-Africa Business Summit organised by the Corporate Council on Africa (CCA), a leading reputable American business association, the investors said there are ways the continent can benefit from them, including in sectors like pharmaceuticals, automobiles, agro-processing and financial technology.

The US government and private sector leaders, together with African political and corporate business leaders, have been working consistently over these years to share insights on critical issues and policies influencing the US-Africa economic partnership.

The three-day summit held virtually included five plenaries and 12-panel sessions highlighting key economic recovery strategies and focused on a range of sectors and issues, including health and vaccine access, trade, digital transformation, infrastructure, financing, small and medium scale enterprises, tourism, women’s leadership and investment opportunities in various African countries.

The high-level dialogue set the scene for reviewing the opportunities for the United States and African public and private sector leaders, how to strengthen the economic partnership between the United States and Africa. Prosper Africa, investments in key sectors such as gas, exploration of possible new bilateral trade agreements, extension of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA).

Driving Inclusive Recovery

The United States said it will drive a pandemic recovery and put women at the forefront. It has contributed 25 million vaccines for Africa. It implies making sure to incorporate women’s perspectives in their efforts. “When women are empowered, they empower their families, they empower their communities and they empower their countries.”

Thokozile Ruzvidzo, Director of the Gender, Poverty and Social Policy Division, United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) said that there are six critical things for women to benefit from AfCFTA.

These include: closing the gender gap as it relates to access to finance, empowering women in the export sector, regional value chains and procurement and ensuring that we include the voice of women in the AfCFTA implementation efforts.

Strong US-Africa Trade Relationship

The US investors hope to focus on a range of issues, from implementing the AfCFTA, boosting Africa’s trade with the US including through AGOA, pursuing agreements that go beyond AGOA, such as the US-Kenya FTA. It will be pursuing public-private partnerships that support the US and African businesses, including women-owned and led SMEs.

The US Trade Representative, Katherine Tai, noted that this is among the top priorities for the Biden-Harris Administration the defeat of COVID and helping facilitate a robust global economic recovery.

She pointed to trade as a key part of that effort and the determination to implement policies that benefit not only those at the top but foster inclusive and sustainable development, supports regional integration, and ensure that all citizens benefit from the global economy.

At the event, Wamkele Mene, Secretary-General of the AfCFTA Secretariat, highlighted the significant progress that has been made in advancing the AfCFTA — with 40 countries that have now ratified the agreement, Phase 1 covering trade in goods and services concluded, and 86% of the rules of origin completed.

He noted that “AfCFTA has unlocked value chains for investors – especially US investors – in key sectors such as pharmaceuticals, automobiles, agro-processing, and financial technology.”

On his part, the Ethiopian Airlines CEO, Mr Tewolde GebreMariam, noted that as the largest air cargo carrier in Africa with hubs in countries across the continent and the airline is successfully connecting Africa with the rest of the world – both for cargo and for passengers and tourism. He urged, though, that more be done to facilitate increased investment, trade and tourism in Africa and to support the AfCFTA vision and goals.

The Assistant US Trade Representative, Ms Constance Hamilton, noted that the US trade policy now transforms beyond AGOA, noting that under the Biden-Harris Administration, they will be ramping up engagement with the AfCFTA Secretariat to support African regional integration, while looking to build stronger relationships with willing African nations through bilateral engagement.

She noted the plans to hold a Trade Ministerial conference in 2021 and to engage with a range of stakeholders to explore ways to enhance the US-Africa trade relationship.

Infrastructure Development

At the event, participants highlighted the growing financing gap in Africa and the importance of renewed public-private partnerships in the development of infrastructure projects.

Minister de Lille of South Africa and Serge Ekue of the West African Development Bank and other panellists suggested that a way to address those flaws is to “implement rigorous master planning that will first help identify bankable projects and then prepare them efficiently while raising local capacity.”

“Infrastructure is not just about the value of the money. It is about the value of the social impact on our communities. These indicated that countries pursue ways to bridge financing infrastructure in Africa,” they submitted.

Beyond COVID-19

Stakeholders at the seminal agreed that it was important to invest in sustainable approaches that bring services close to the patients. These include strong primary healthcare (PHC) as the foundation for strengthening health systems, including the integration of services with a multi-disciplinary team.

Looking forward, it was said that there are opportunities for impact investing in health in Africa by deploying financial resources that can have financial returns/commercial opportunities while improving health outcomes.

Closing Trade Finance Gap

The event gap participants the avenue to discuss the trade finance gap with African, Diaspora, SMEs and women-owned businesses and how organizations can contribute to reduce (or eliminate) the gap.

Participants discussed the impact of the pandemic on their organizations and initiatives contributing to economic activity recovery, as well as improving business operations. Panellists also highlighted the importance of diversifying both suppliers and clients, in addition to looking beyond the immediate market to new partnerships.

The diverse panel emphasized the growing trend of digitalization of SMEs and African business operations. Moving to digital and connected operations will help businesses not only simplify operations but also allow them to reach customers in places they were not able to operate before. This also will positively impact the relationship between Diaspora businesses and businesses on the continent.

They concluded that implementing strategies that will enable African SMEs to grow, build capacity, find new U.S. partners, and access cheap and easily available capital will be crucial to close the trade finance gap.

Sustainable Agribusiness Ecosystem

Participants at this meeting agreed that diversification was the way to improve the agribusiness sector. Collaboration between US and African companies will help achieve sustainable development through increased access to investment financing and access to global markets for African companies, they opined.

However, it was stressed that achieving diversification will require producing more value-added products, which will be achieved through investment in industrialization, R&D, and technology.

Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) and favourable government policies will be key to funding these efforts, they further stated, noting that investing in SMEs will be vital to improving agribusiness value chains since SMEs are deeply integrated at every level from retailers to crop transporters while helping scale up these SME’s make the value-chains more productive and improve the sector’s output.

Digital Transformation

Speaking at the programme, the South African Minister of Trade, Industry, and Competition, Ebrahim Patel, noted that digital technology remains a critical tool and a critical enabler to build economic growth and economic opportunities.

The Minister said digital technologies will help create new products and new markets for millions of Africans. Policymakers, corporations, and entrepreneurs have a unique partnership opportunity to develop digital infrastructure, skills, and ecosystems.

Minister Patel invited the private sector to share ideas and suggestions to make the AfCFTA e-commerce protocol fit for its purpose.

It was agreed that the COVID-19 pandemic has transformed the digitalization of life and work. As a result, technology companies are developing lifesaving products and services.

For example, Google and Apple developed exposure notification technology, which helps slow the spread of COVID-19. Google also developed a range of products for remote education.

As African businesses and consumers have shifted towards e-commerce and digital payments, companies like Visa have accelerated the rollout of payment infrastructure.

For digital trade and the digital economy to work effectively, panellists recommended that the AfCFTA be implemented to establish a continent-wide harmonization of business-friendly rules and regulations.

Future of Energy in Africa

During the summit, high-level participants from the US government, African countries and the private sector discussed the need for public-private sector collaboration on energy transition in Africa and innovative thinking on the critical need to address energy poverty and access to electricity in Africa while advancing the urgent fight against global warming.

Joining US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate, John Kerry, from the USG were senior US government officials from the Departments of Energy and State, and the US Development Finance Corporation (DFC).

Also participating in the dialogue were Ministers of Energy and senior African officials from Angola, Egypt, Ghana, Mozambique, Nigeria, and Senegal, as well as CEOs and other top executives from a range of U.S. and African oil, gas, and power companies and major investors in the sector.

In his presentation, Mr Kerry stated that tackling climate change is a top priority for the United States and reiterated the US government commitment to encouraging other countries to achieve their respective climate and clean energy goals.

It was noted that more African countries need to sign on to the Paris Agreement to tackle climate change as it is important that all countries work together to address global climate change.

Other US government officials acknowledged energy poverty in Africa and noted that improving energy access in Africa is paramount to the US government as it continues to invest in electricity systems in Africa through initiatives like Power Africa.

They also noted that even while the United States is pushing for a strong political commitment from African to prioritizing and meeting climate change goals, the US government will continue to support and finance energy projects (including some in gas) in Africa, particularly where renewable energy options may not be viable.

African Ministers and government officials shared the strategies they have adopted in their respective countries to both adopt clean energy technologies in oil and gas, while also investing in renewable energy options.

In Senegal, Egypt and Angola, renewable energy is at the forefront of energy transition strategies and initiatives, and it was noted that collaborations with international partners are essential to achieving long term energy and climate change goals in Africa.

CEOs and senior executives of companies with operations in Africa who participated in the session highlighted that they are actively working on energy access in Africa, see gas (particularly abated gas) as a medium-term, low-cost transition option to address climate change, while some are also investing in and financing renewable energy projects in Africa.

There were calls for fair treatment of Africa, in terms of climate change, as well as for the US government to prioritize development over climate change when it comes to Africa, and to continue financing gas projects in Africa for the next 5-7 years, which some thought could actually help meet climate goals faster as Africans (especially those in rural areas) shift from wood burning to use of gas to cook.

Noting the complexity of these energy issues, many agreed that public-private partnerships are crucial to renewable energy transitions, and thought that further dialogues like this one leading up to the COP 26 talks scheduled to take place in Glasgow in November 2021 would be crucial in the US and Africans reaching a common understanding about the way forward on the future of energy and climate in Africa.

Looking Forward

The US government said the Biden-Harris Administration was prioritizing economic relationships with Africa.

Dana Banks, White House Senior Director for Africa, announced the White House Administration made a request for $80 million in additional funding to push for the Prosper Africa Build Together Campaign that will drive billions of dollars of investment in Africa, build new markets for American products and create thousands of jobs for African and American workers.

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BRICS at Rio de Janeiro: And What Next?

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BRICS at Rio de Janeiro

By Kestér Kenn Klomegâh

Popularly referred to as BRICS, the informal group of emerging-market economies (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa), meeting in Rio de Janeiro, has outlined a new unprecedented multitude of goals to challenge unipolar system. In the context of rising uncertainty, BRICS has further set up new models to change the economic architecture through South-South cooperation.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva hosted early July BRICS summit in Rio de Janeiro, capital city of Brazil. U.S. President Donald Trump’s position on many sensitive issues has offered the association something of a dilemma. In a joint statement decried “the rise of unjustified unilateral protectionist measures” and the “indiscriminate raising” of tariffs. BRICS members all agree that “these tariffs are not productive,” Ambassador Xolisa Mabhongo, South Africa’s lead negotiator, or sherpa, said in an interview. “They are not good for the world economy. They are not good for development.”

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has a raft of controversies with United States over the introduction of single BRICS currency, a suggestion he mooted in 2023. Besides that Brazil is currently facing steep economic challenges in the face of trade frictions with the United States. Majority of his citizens are facing deportation, it implies significant fallen in remittances and that would worsen social and financial standing of families across Brazil. It has had diverse criticisms, so are other new BRICS members with vastly different political and economic systems, and yet advocating for reshaping the global balance of power. Most of them are negotiating to be at discussion table, to straighten economic ties, with President Donald Trump.

On one hand, BRICS leaders seriously Trump’s “indiscriminate” import tariffs and other trade policies. On the other hand, Trump has also warned that countries which sideline with the policies of the BRICS alliance against United States interests will be hit with an extra 10% tariffs.

BRICS summit further called for strengthening multilateralism. China unreservedly underscored its desire to work with member states to “strengthen the BRICS strategic partnership and safeguard multilateralism,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said in a briefing in Beijing. With noticeable policy  and economic disparities, its rapid expansion to include Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Indonesia and the United Arab Emirates bolstered its representation — the new BRICS accounts for about 40% of global GDP and roughly half the planet’s population.

BRICS policy to build a multipolar world has attracted developing countries. Trade among the five original BRICS nations grew 40% between 2021 and 2024 to US$740 billion a year, according to International Monetary Fund data.

Emerging Tasks from Rio de Janeiro

Brazil took over from Russia last year December, promised to put in complete order housekeeping issues — officially termed institutional development — on the agenda to better integrate new members and boost internal cohesion. With ten (10) partner members that includes Belarus, Cuba and Vietnam, BRICS plans to work ‘ad hoc practical cooperation’ basis. These partner states have absolutely no decision-making authority as full members. The enlarged bloc is now characterized by emerging potential opportunities but deepening frictions. BRICS is increasingly experiencing complexities based on their individual priorities and geopolitical orientations. Yet the bloc, often denying the unpredictable stage of stark realities, continues boasting of coherence and systemic efforts toward creating a multipolarity.

BRICS boasts of huge resources, and substantially claims to be ahead of other groups in this parameter, including G7 with US$57 trillion. Further to that, BRICS has many supporters in the Global South and East.

At the tail-end of the July 6th to 7th summit, BRICS reset new tasks, little achievements were highlighted by speakers, in addition to those previously rattled phrases such as BRICS leads ‘multipolar world’ and be guided as key centres of global governance and work collective towards economic growth, and further gravitate the development of markets in the Global South. The question of payment in local currencies was underscored while BRICS members emphasized reducing the use of dollar in currency transactions. In fact, several promising initiatives have, thus become future responsibilities of India, who takes up the BRICS Chairmanship.

Russia’s Achievements

During the final summit at Kazan, which was held in October 2024, Russia established a category of BRICS partner states. In addition, Russia proposed creating a whole new BRICS investment platform. The idea behind it is to jointly develop coordinated instruments to support and to bring in the funds from the economies of BRICS countries and from the Global South and Global East countries. It suggested launching a special mechanism for holding consultations on World Trade Organisation matters. The processes for creating a grain exchange, a climate research centre, a permanent logistics platform, and a sports cooperation programme in BRICS are moving forward.

There are other valuable ideas proposed by Russia, which include the formation of a carbon market partnership, an arbitration investment centre, a fair competition platform, and a permanent tax secretariat within BRICS.

In September, Moscow will host Intervision, a popular international television song contest which has got the attention of numerous performers from BRICS and BRICS partner countries who confirmed their willingness to participate in it. A humanitarian project of that magnitude is designed to promote universal, cultural, family, and spiritual values ​​shared by members.

India’s Proposals

With participation of BRICS members, partners and outreach invitees, India proposed the creation of BRICS Science and Research Repository to promote collaboration in critical areas, highlighted its initiatives in agri-biotech and digital education access, calling on BRICS to adopt a demand-driven approach and ensure long-term financial sustainability in New Development Bank (NDB) projects.

China’s Suggestions

Chinese Premier Li Qiang praised the complementary advantages and suggested broader forms of cooperation in such areas as digital economy, green economy, sci-tech innovation and aerospace. From notable indications, China stands ready to closely work with members and partners in enriching the dimensions both on bilateral basis and multilateral relations. China expressed high concerns over achieving concrete results, rather than mere high-quality rhetoric. Premier Li Qiang further talked about BRICS working within multilateral frameworks such as the United Nations, the G20 and the African Union (AU), Eurasia and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States.

New Development Bank

The BRICS Bank President, Dilma Rousseff, has officially welcomed Colombia and Uzbekistan as new members. The membership now totalled 11 members, including Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Bangladesh, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, and Algeria. “We have several other countries under observation and review, and they may join the bank in the future,” Rousseff stated at the briefing in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

The NDB, established in 2015 as a multilateral development bank, operates with full respect for the sovereignty and development priorities of its member countries. Based in Shanghai, the bank has already approved over 120 projects worth a total of US$40 billion, focusing on areas such as clean energy, transport infrastructure, environmental protection, and social infrastructure.

Final Declaration

After the plenary session the final Declaration of the 17th BRICS summit – “Rio de Janeiro Declaration” – was adopted on 6th July 2025. The document welcomed Indonesia as a new BRICS member, and the following Belarus, Bolivia, Kazakhstan, Cuba, Nigeria, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Uganda, and Uzbekistan as BRICS partner countries.

The 126 point-document passed on the Chairmanship to India in 2026 and the holding of the XVIII BRICS Summit in India. The document acknowledged the significance of (i) Strengthening Multilateralism and Reforming Global Governance (ii) Promoting Peace, Security and International Stability (iii) Deepening International Economic, Trade and Financial Cooperation (iv) Combating Climate Change and Promoting Sustainable Development (v) Partnerships for the Promotion of Human, Social and Cultural Development

Conclusion

Analysts say in a summarized comment that despite the glaring inconsistencies among the group, even as they have, somehow, managed to speak with one voice on major international issues, China and India both interested to lead the BRICS and the Global South as a whole. India Prime Minister Narendra Modi takes over the BRICS presidency for 2026, as he explained that the group’s diversity is its strength, and shares collective commitment to emerging multipolar world. Original members of the bloc Brazil, Russia, India, and China have been joined by South Africa and, more recently, by Saudi Arabia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Ethiopia and Indonesia.

Kestér Kenn Klomegâh has a diverse work experience in the field of business intelligence and consultancy. His focused research interest includes geopolitical changes, foreign relations and economic development related questions in Africa with external countries. Klomegâh has media publications, policy monographs and e-handbooks

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Russia Unlocking Africa’s Food Security: Model of Connectivity and Collaboration

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Russia Visa-Free Regime

By Kestér Kenn Klomegâh

With geopolitical developments shaping the world, Africa is expectedly changing with the times. It has gone far, particularly with Russia, opened new directions in bilateral economic cooperation after their joint historic summits.

It is also time to make critical appraisals of Russia’s policy towards Africa. By next year 2026, Russia’s strategic plan to ensure and support food security may fade away its its policy mainstream.

First and second summits witnessed agreements and declarations signed to tectonic applause with an unwavering decision characterized by increasing food and agricultural products, including grains and chicken meat across Africa.

There was also an underlined promised to ferry unspecified huge amount of fertilizer to Africa. Africa leaders expressed an excitement to the announcement of this partnership with the Russian Federation. But now these aspects of Russian-African partnership on food security would likely change, primarily due to Africa adopting import substitution policy and redirecting focus on radical measures to improve domestic agricultural production.

On May 13, the Intergovernmental Commission for Trade and Economic Cooperation, during the meeting in St. Petersburg, Economic Development Minister Maxim Reshetnikov, who co-chaired the meeting with Planning and Investment Minister Kitila Mkumbo, noted Tanzania’s geographical location as a single window for Russian products entering the East African market.

More than 40 Russian companies are currently interested in exporting animal products and a few others to Tanzania and to East Africa region. The participants emphasized the country could be a conduit and entry-gate through which to reach East African region with Russia’s agricultural exports, and that would generate an estimated US$15 billion in revenue for Russian government.

What is important, and the most interesting fact here, Tanzanian economy is heavily based on agriculture. It has a vast arable land for farming. But Tanzania, like many other African leaders, are readily addicted to spend huge budget importing goods that they can locally.

According to the Economic Development Minister Maxim Reshetnikov many potential state buyers expressed interest in such imports, reiterated Russia’s preparedness to ensure food security.

In a similar direction, earlier on as reported by Interfax Information Agency, the Agroexport Center of the Ministry of Agriculture listed 25 African countries.

In an interview, Russian Union of Grain Exporters and Producers Chairman, Dmitry Sergeyev, at the 4th Russian Grain Forum in Sochi, emphasized that  the potential export destinations for Russian grain crops in the current season included Algeria, Kenya, Nigeria, Libya, Morocco, Tunisia, Tanzania and Sudan in Africa.

In recent seasons, shipments to Algeria, Israel, Kenya, China, Libya and Morocco have increased manifold or even by an order of magnitude. The first shipments were made to Djibouti, Gambia, the Central African Republic, and Eritrea.

“Russia is a reliable exporter of wheat to countries in Africa. We currently occupy a third of the entire African wheat market, exporting to 40 African countries overall. The most notable success of recent years was the sharp increase or start of exports to Algeria, Libya, Kenya, Morocco, Tunisia, and Tanzania,” Dmitry Sergeyev told Interfax News Agency.

The African grain market held many prospects in light of fast population growth, the growing middle class and increasing purchasing power. Although, it would be a mistake to refer to Africa as a monolith, as it has five sub-regions, which differ significantly from each other. Therefore, Russia is developing its relationship with different African countries in different ways.

“On the other hand, there are some other countries in central and southern parts of the continent, which often lack sufficient infrastructure and are logistically hard to reach – we have to interact with them via international traders. Increasing grain exports to Africa require a comprehensive approach encompassing logistics, storage and processing. We are already taking certain steps in this direction,” explained Dmitry Sergeyev.

Given it’s keenness not only in supplying but increasing agricultural products and fertilizers, Russia’s remote aim was to raise revenue from these importing African countries. These African countries are blessed with huge expanse of agricultural lands, the human resources are enormous just need support and encouragement from the government institutions and agencies.

Local African agriculturists have complained bitterly of gross lack of state support, and yet governments allocated huge large part of national budget to import on bilateral agreements, goods and service that could be made and obtained at home.

African leaders are solidarizing their interests by sacrificing local production, and under-utilizing available resources. Russia consistently challenges American and European hegemony, asked Africa to transact deals using their local currencies.

Resultantly, Africa has to abandon the importance of American dollar, and still pursue corporate agreements to review and possibly extend AGOA for the next 10 years.

In 2024, financial remittances amounted to $58 billion from United States to Africa. Meanwhile, Kremlin and Russian companies rarely announce financial figures for investment in various sectors. The stark reality is that Russia, at best and based on its rising ‘soft power’ and political influence, could further balance strategic powers with building comprehensive investment partnerships in Africa.

Local Russian media reported series of Russia’s exports to Africa, praised Kremlin’s efforts to feed Africa but further warned against growing Africa’s growing dependence on imports. Policy experts have set more alternative tones, at both Russia-Africa summits and several similar conferences, for rather focusing on stronger agricultural initiatives inside Africa.

Generally, the proposed suggestion was to push for greater collaboration on Africa’s greater self-reliance on domestic agricultural production. These have, since then, remained a top-scale challenge featuring in Russia-Africa economic cooperation.

As PhosAgro’s First Deputy CEO, Siroj Loikov, noted during the briefing in early July 2025, PhosAgro not only continues to strengthen its position as the leader in terms of total supply of all mineral fertilizers to the priority Russian market, but also remains a key supplier of phosphate-based fertilizers to the countries of the Global South, including African countries.

Over the past decade, PhosAgro’s exports have nearly doubled and achieved 8.6 million tonnes in 2024. Today, Africa is a key focus for the Company’s international growth strategy. PhosAgro supplies its products to 21 African countries. The top five African importers of the company’s agrochemical products include South Africa, Côte d’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Morocco, and Mozambique.

With its extensive product line, PhosAgro is well positioned to address the specific needs of African regions, offering customers the best solutions while also making a significant contribution to the continent’s food security.

Over the next five years, PhosAgro expects to double deliveries to the continent. There were some praises, but on other side also raised significant concerns over extremely high cost of logistics and the resultant effects on prices for importing African governments.

In addition, leading agronomy researchers and practitioners say Russian chemical fertilizers and its agrochemistry have had negative effects on crop production and livestock farming, simply not compactible with the local soil conditions.

Therefore, the practical solution would be to settle for suitable alternatives. It would be line to adopt import substitution, to largely cut importation cost and preserve the environment. Moreso, local production invariably creates some employment for the youth.

Speaking at the 32nd Afreximbank Annual Meeting, Entrepreneur Aliko Dangote, believes Africa could be a ‘Heaven’ within five years (until 2030)—if Africans think boldly and act with purpose. His position was that Africans can shape their own future, urging leaders to prioritize long-term development over reliance on foreign industrial sources.

Dangote has already exemplified this ‘local self-reliance’ through his $20 billion refinery in Lagos—the largest single-train facility in the world—which is already reshaping Africa’s energy landscape and challenging Europe’s $17 billion gasoline export market.

Furthermore, Dangote plans to generate $30 billion in revenue next year and become the top global urea exporter—bringing his vision of African industrial might closer to reality.

Reports indicated that Nigeria first-class entrepreneur, Aliko Dangote would establish under a major agreement to engage in large-scale production of fertilizer for the Eastern Africa. The estimated $3 billion aims at stabilizing supply and enhance agricultural productivity. Ethiopia and neighbouring countries have faced shortages and worse, spent much importing from abroad. The shortages have also worsened due to foreign currency constraints, logistical delays and geopolitical instability.

Located near the Ethiopia-Djibouti logistics corridor, the Dangote Fertilizer, the largest granulated urea fertilizer complex in Africa, has played a vital role in in reducing Nigeria’s reliance on imported fertilizers and supporting the country’s agricultural sector. The expansion in interpreted as part of measures to solidify Dangote Fertilizer’s presence in the African fertilizer market, ensuring regular supply, and support regional agricultural growth.

Several policy experts have, over the past few years, suggested to African leaders and their governments to drastically halt importation of agricultural items that can be produce locally, redirect funds in supporting local farmers. The most prominent reasons are obviously to increase local productivity, create employment while addressing multiple obstacles confronting African agricultural production.

Quite recently, the Board of Directors of the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) and African Development Banks have also told African leaders to halt imports, and further announced financial allocation for the African agricultural sector. Shareholders in both banks have also advised to accelerate efforts in boosting intra-African agriculture.

Under an agreement, Afreximbank is financing the construction works related to the fertilizer plant based in Soyo, Angola. This transformative $2 billion fertilizer plant project reflects the commitment of OPAIA Group to the Southern African country’s industrial and agricultural development in partnership with globally renowned technical companies such as KBR, TOYO Engineering Corporation, WeDO, and Wuhan Engineering Company.

Speaking at the signing ceremony on behalf of the President of the Bank, Ms Oluranti Doherty, Managing Director, Export Development at Afreximbank said: “Afreximbank is pleased to lead the mobilization of capital for this project, recognizing the importance of Amufert SA’s ammonia and urea production plant to regional and national food sovereignty, via the localization of fertilizer production in Angola. When commissioned, the fertilizer plant will  facilitate higher agriculture yields, higher production, and an increase in export volumes of agriculture products from Angola.”

Agostinho Kapaia, Chairman of OPAIA Group, said: “This project represents much more than the construction of a factory. It is a key element in the economic development of Angola and Africa, a driving force for the growth of industry and a concrete solution to the urgent need to increase agricultural production and guarantee food security for future generations.”

With a production capacity of 4,000 metric tons per day, the Amufert S.A. plant is expected to revolutionize Angola’s agricultural sector, significantly reducing the country’s reliance on imported fertilizers.

The project will generate significant benefits, including the creation of 4,700 jobs — 3,500 during the construction phase and 1,200 permanent positions once completed. It will also contribute to Angola’s economic diversification by leveraging natural gas resources, thereby reducing reliance on oil revenues.

Additionally, the initiative will support farmers by ensuring a consistent supply of affordable, high-quality fertilizers, boosting agricultural productivity and enhancing food security.

This will not only enhance Angola’s agricultural resilience but also position the country as a leader in fertilizer production across Africa. Surplus production will enable Angola to become a key fertilizer exporter within Africa, fostering regional economic integration and promoting intra-African trade.

In a short policy summary, the challenges of Russia’s increased agricultural exports instead of focusing on investment in local production in Africa may ultimately be reviewed taking into serious consideration import substitution measures being adopted by African States.

For championing environmental urgency and import substitution policy, Africa must lead a bold policy shift, not for geopolitical solidarity but for attaining an economic sovereignty.

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African Media Practitioners Visit PhosAgro’s Volkhov Plant

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PhosAgro's Volkhov Plant

By Kestér Kenn Klomegâh

Journalists from leading African media visited PhosAgro’s Volkhov production complex. They took part in an extensive tour of the production and infrastructure facilities, including the plant’s upgraded phosphoric acid and mineral fertilizer production facilities, as well as the new SK-800 sulphuric acid plant and new energy facilities, which recycle process steam into electricity for the plant. During their meeting with Phosagro’s executives, the journalists learned more about the significant role that the Company plays in ensuring global food security and supporting humanitarian projects in Africa.

As PhosAgro’s First Deputy CEO, Siroj Loikov, noted during the briefing, PhosAgro not only continues to strengthen its position as the leader in terms of total supply of all mineral fertilizers to the priority Russian market, but also remains a key supplier of phosphate-based fertilizers to the countries of the Global South, including African countries. Over the past decade, PhosAgro’s exports have nearly doubled and achieved 8.6 million tonnes in 2024. Today, Africa is a key focus for the Company’s international growth strategy. PhosAgro supplies its products to 21 African countries. The top five African importers of the Company’s agrochemical products include South Africa, Côte d’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Morocco, and Mozambique. With its extensive product line, PhosAgro is well positioned to address the specific needs of African regions, offering customers the best solutions while also making a significant contribution to the continent’s food security.

“Over the past year, PhosAgro has increased its supplies to Africa by a third to a total of 740 thousand tonnes. Since 2018, there has been a more than sixfold increase. I am also pleased to inform you that the exports to Africa have continued to expand in the first half of 2025 and have increased by a third compared to the first half of 2024. Over the next five years, we expect to double our deliveries to the continent. The launch of our state-of-the-art production facilities in Volkhov enhances the Company’s capacity to export our products to Africa. The plant, with a production capacity of one million tonnes, is located near Baltic ports, which are focused on exporting products to friendly countries,” Siroj Loikov said.

PhosAgro’s partnership with Africa is not restricted to the supply of agrochemical products. PhosAgro is working closely with international organizations to implement humanitarian initiatives in Africa. As part of the Green Chemistry for Life programme, in partnership with UNESCO and the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC), the Company provides grants to young scientists studying the application of advanced chemical technologies in areas such as environmental protection, natural resource management and waste recycling. Over eight rounds of the programme, the international jury has reviewed over 1000 applications and awarded grants to 55 young researchers, including 15 talented African scientists from South Africa, Egypt, Kenya, Tunisia, Nigeria, Sudan and Zimbabwe. Furthermore, over 200 young African scientists have received stipends as part of the PhosAgro–IUPAC Summer Schools on Green Chemistry.

PhosAgro also became an official partner for the launch of the African Soil Laboratory Network (AFRILAB) as part of a joint project in collaboration with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). AFRILAB currently has 220 laboratories across 54 countries, assessing the quality and safety of fertilizers and monitoring soil conditions. To date, more than 11,000 farmers from developing countries have already taken part in the project, including approximately 4,500 farmers from over 20 African countries. This year, the programme will be expanded.

Last year, PhosAgro also launched Pro Agro Lectorium, an international educational platform with learning resources available in English and Portuguese. Nearly 170 leading academicians and practitioners from around the world, including 9 speakers from African countries, have recorded more than 420 lectures on agricultural science and agrochemistry, crop production and livestock farming, innovation and digitalization in agriculture, economics and responsible agriculture. In collaboration with its African partners, PhosAgro is integrating its online platform into the educational process for African students. The platform is constantly expanding: nine cooperation agreements have already been signed with African universities. Nowadays, thousands of African farmers and students access new knowledge and information on this platform.

“We will continue working in close cooperation with scientists, businesses, government authorities, and international organizations, to create a strong foundation for Africa’s food and technological sovereignty,” Siroj Loikov concluded.

During their visit, the journalists toured the Fifteenth Element corporate museum and exhibition centre, visited classes of PhosAgro’s key social project — DROZD (Educated and Healthy Children of Russia) — which is aimed at providing children with free access to additional education, sports activities, spiritual and patriotic upbringing, learned about the plant’s history, and explored St Andrew’s Cathedral, which the Company built as part of its Spiritual Revival programme to promote cultural and spiritual values. The journalists thanked senior executives of PhosAgro and its Volkhov plant for inviting them.

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