Unlocking Industrial Potential: Financing African Manufacturing Growth Takes Centre Stage

As Africa positions itself as the next global manufacturing frontier, stakeholders from across the continent are turning their focus to one of the sector’s most pressing challenges — access to finance. Under the banner “Financing African Manufacturing Growth”, leading policymakers, financiers, and industry experts will converge at the Manufacturing Indaba, to explore how innovative financing models, public-private partnerships, and investment incentives can transform the future of African manufacturing.

According to the African Development Bank (AfDB), Africa’s manufacturing sector requires over US$50 billion annually in new investment to meet industrialisation goals, but the continent faces a financing gap of at least US$20–25 billion per year. Meanwhile, SMEs — which account for more than 90% of all businesses and roughly 80% of manufacturing jobs in Africa — receive less than 20% of total available commercial financing.

“Financing is the fuel of industrialisation,” says Liz Hart, Managing Director of the Manufacturing Indaba, “Africa’s manufacturers need more than ambition — they need access to capital, blended finance models, and a policy environment that de-risks industrial investment.”

Key Focus Areas Include:

• Innovative SME Financing Models: From asset-based lending and supply chain finance to development-backed credit facilities, experts will unpack practical tools to unlock growth for small and medium manufacturers.
• Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs): Successful PPP case studies will be showcased, demonstrating how collaborative models can finance industrial infrastructure, logistics, and power supply.
• Incentives & Policy Reform: Governments across Africa are revising industrial policy frameworks to create investment-friendly environments, including tax holidays, import duty waivers, SEZ benefits, and credit guarantees.

With the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) unlocking a potential US$3.4 trillion market, financing scalable manufacturing operations is more urgent than ever to build local production capacity, boost exports, and create millions of jobs.

This high-level session will be a central feature of the upcoming Manufacturing Indaba, bringing together banks, DFIs, investment firms, ministries, industrialists, and manufacturing leaders from across the continent.