Africa must move beyond discussions about its infrastructure financing gap and focus on making more projects investable.This was the central message during the official launch of the 16th Africa PPP Infrastructure Finance, Investment & Partnerships Summit (Africa PPP 2026) today.
The convening brings together over 400 delegates representing governments, investors, financiers,, and infrastructure developers from 36 countries in Nairobi from November 11–13.
The scale of the opportunity under discussion is reflected in Kenya’s own public-private partnership programme, which has a pipeline of 60 projects across national and county governments.
Ten projects, valued at approximately Ksh S353 billion, are already operational or under construction, while a further 50 are at various stages of preparation and development.
The Government is targeting at least Ksh S70 billion in additional private investment through PPPs during the current financial year, following the approval of seven new projects in the first quarter.
The programme includes six operational projects and four under construction, among them the Ksh 183 billion Nairobi–Nakuru–Mau Summit Highway, illustrating the scale of infrastructure opportunities that can be advanced through private sector participation.
The Kenyan experience reflects the wider continental challenge. Africa requires between $130 billion Ksh 17 trillion) and $170 billion (Ksh 22 trillion) in infrastructure investment annually, with an estimated financing gap of between $68 billion (Ksh 9 trillion) and $108 billion (Ksh 4 trillion), despite more than $4 trillion (Ksh 520 trillion) held in domestic savings and assets across the continent.
Discussions at the summit will focus on how to connect such available capital with viable projects capable of delivering economic and social value.
Hosted by Kenya’s Public Private Partnerships Directorate and organized by AME Trade Limited, with support from the State Department for Public Investments and Asset Management, the summit is held under the theme “Building Africa’s Prosperity: Transformative Infrastructure, Investment and Partnerships to Accelerate Economic Development.”
During the launch, Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary for the National Treasury and Economic Planning, FCPA John Mbadi, represented by Lee Kinyanjui, Cabinet Secretary in the Ministry of Investments, Trade and Industry (MITI), called for a shift in how African governments approach infrastructure development, emphasising the need to measure progress not simply by financing commitments or projects announced, but by the infrastructure and services ultimately delivered.“The real test of infrastructure development is much simpler: When will the road be completed? When will the water flow? When will the electricity reach the factory? And when will the jobs be created? It is precisely this convergence of interests that makes Public-Private Partnerships so important. We need to explore how we to collectively turn Africa’s enormous infrastructure potential into tangible economic and social transformation,” Mbadi noted.
Participants will continue to examine how governments could strengthen project preparation and structure public-private partnerships (PPPs) to attract more private and institutional financing into infrastructure.
The discussions seek to reinforce the importance of moving beyond financing commitments towards developing well-structured projects that can attract investment and reach implementation.
“We must invest adequately in feasibility studies, technical assessments, environmental and social safeguards, land acquisition planning and appropriate risk allocation. These issues must be addressed early to avoid delays during negotiations and implementation,” said Hon. Cyrell Wagunda, Principal Secretary, State Department for Public Investments and Assets Management.
The PPP Director General, Eng. Kefa Seda, called on delegates to use the summit as a platform for practical knowledge -sharing, candid engagement and collective problem-solving.
