At the African Investment Forum, leaders commit to catalyse investment in cities as engines of the continent’s economic growth

African Development Bank President Akinwumi Adesina on Thursday pledged greater commitment to the development of cities and stressed the need for increased investment and autonomy for municipalities, the continent’s engine for economic growth.

The Bank chief spoke at a high-level forum for mayors titled: “Leveraging Cities and Municipalities for National Development,” held on the sidelines of the Africa Investment Forum 2023 Market Days in Marrakech, Morocco.

The meeting, co-organised by the African Development Bank and Big Win Philanthropy(link is external), brought together mayors and governors of several major African cities including Lagos, Dakar, Addis Ababa Abidjan, Kigali and Nairobi, and representatives of governments and financial and development institutions.

“The Mayoral Forum launches what we hope is the beginning of new collaboration between financial institutions, cities, states and municipalities, to accelerate the growth and development of Africa,” Adesina said in welcoming remarks. “It also shows the priority that the partners and investors in the Africa Investment Forum will place on improving investments in sub-national level projects,” he added.

The session also included a presentation on a new report on African cities, titled From Millions to Billions: Financing the Development of African Cities, commissioned by the African Development Bank : open the PDF.