Reflections on the Address by IFC Managing Director Makhtar Diop at the Africa CEO Forum, Kigali, Rwanda
President, SaHel Knowledge Campus Think Tank (SKCTT)
The 2026 Africa CEO Forum held in Kigali, Rwanda, brought together Heads of State, captains of industry, development finance institutions, investors, and business leaders from across Africa and beyond. One of the most compelling interventions came from the Managing Director of the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Mr. Makhtar Diop, whose message was clear and unequivocal: Africa must scale or risk falling behind.
His remarks could not have come at a more critical moment in Africa’s development journey.
The global economic landscape is undergoing profound transformation. Geopolitical tensions, disruptions in global supply chains, declining development assistance, climate change, and rapid technological advancement are reshaping international commerce and investment patterns. In this environment, Africa can no longer afford to remain fragmented, dependent, and economically vulnerable.
Mr. Diop emphasized that scale is no longer a luxury but a necessity. African enterprises must grow beyond national boundaries and become continental and global champions capable of competing effectively in international markets. The era when businesses could thrive solely within domestic markets is rapidly fading.
Central to his address was the concept of shared ownership. Africa’s future prosperity will increasingly depend on Africans investing in Africa. Pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, insurance companies, institutional investors, banks, and high-net-worth individuals across the continent must channel greater resources into productive sectors of African economies.
The implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) provides an unprecedented opportunity to create larger markets, deepen regional value chains, and promote industrialization. However, the success of AfCFTA will depend significantly on the emergence of strong indigenous enterprises capable of operating across borders.
Particularly noteworthy was Mr. Diop’s call for greater attention to family-owned businesses, which constitute the backbone of many African economies. Across the continent, family enterprises account for a significant proportion of employment and wealth creation. Yet many struggle with governance challenges, succession planning, and intergenerational wealth transfer.
African universities, business schools, policymakers, and research institutions should therefore prioritize the study of family business governance, succession, and sustainability to ensure that successful enterprises survive beyond their founders and continue contributing to economic transformation.
The IFC Managing Director also challenged the long-standing characterization of Africa as merely a “frontier market.” Indeed, Africa should now be viewed as an emerging hub of innovation, entrepreneurship, manufacturing, digital transformation, and investment opportunities.
Africa possesses abundant natural resources, a youthful population, expanding consumer markets, and an entrepreneurial spirit that remains among the strongest in the world. What is required is visionary leadership, sound governance, investment in infrastructure and human capital, and above all, greater continental collaboration.
The message from Kigali is therefore unmistakable: Africa’s future will be shaped not by aid dependency, but by investment, entrepreneurship, innovation, regional integration, and private sector-led growth.
Africa must scale.
Africa must industrialize.
Africa must integrate.
Africa must invest in itself.
Only then will the continent fully realize its enormous potential and assume its rightful place in the global economy.
Courtesy:
Ambassador Abdoulie M. Touray
President
SaHel Knowledge Campus Think Tank (SKCTT
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