Support for markets in Africa has increased from approximately £600m in 2018-19 to over £2.3bn in 2020-21. Supported construction projects include the widening of the Douala Road from two to six lanes in Cameroon, supporting the trade route from the capital Yaounde to the port at Douala.
The UK held the second Africa Investment Conference yesterday (20th January) to boost economic cooperation with African nations, particularly greener, climate-friendly projects.
It has also launched the Growth Gateway - a digital tool to link African and British businesses to UK Government trade, finance and investment services and opportunities. The service is designed to provide practical online support to businesses in Africa that want to export to and invest in the UK, and businesses in the UK that want to export to and invest in Africa, backed up by a team of trade and investment specialists.
Secretary of state for international trade, Anne-Marie Trevelyan, hosted the one-day virtual event, which aimed to unlock millions of pounds of new investment, especially in clean energy industries in both the UK and across Africa.
Trevelyan said: “Two years on from the inaugural UK-Africa Investment Summit, the UK’s ambition to be Africa’s investment partner of choice has never been stronger.
“The continent has huge economic potential and our continued partnership will help businesses capitalise on investment opportunities, supporting high value jobs and boost enterprise in every part of the UK.
“This year’s conference focuses on the importance of resilient, sustainable investment to support Africa as it pivots towards a more environmentally-friendly growth trajectory, and I look forward to working with leaders from the continent as they continue on this path to a greener future.”
Minister for investment Gerry Grimstone said: “At the first UK-Africa Investment Summit, the Prime Minister stated his intention to make the UK Africa’s investment partner of choice.
“This year's conference is a key part of that legacy, bringing our business communities together to make the case for a closer investment partnership with a renewed focus on sustainability and clean growth.”
Minister for Africa Vicky Ford said: “The UK is deepening our economic ties with countries across Africa. This conference is a fantastic opportunity to bring British and African businesses together to unlock millions of pounds of new investment, especially in clean energy industries in both the UK and across Africa.
There is so much more that the UK and African countries can do together. Growth Gateway will m“ake it easier than ever for African and British businesses to access the support they need to boost two-way trade and investment.”
Last year’s virtual conference was attended by over 2,800 delegates from over 40 African countries and across the UK.
New projects in Africa supported by UKEF in 2021 included:
- Over £120m worth of support to expand and modernise Ghana’s Kumasi Market, the largest market in West Africa visited by 800,000 people per day;
- Over £40m in support enabled Gloucestershire-based Mabey Bridge to secure a contract to build and export 87 emergency bridges in Ghana for areas impacted by flooding;
- UKEF support enabled Leicestershire based construction equipment supplier Quarry Manufacturing & Supplies to secure a deal worth £1.5m to support road construction in North Tema, Southern Ghana;
- UKEF support also enabled Northern Irish SME Tesab Engineering to win a deal worth £1m to supply manufacturing and industrial equipment to support construction projects in Ghana;
- £236m of support for the construction of six new hospitals across Cote D'Ivoire, UKEF’s largest ever loan in francophone Africa;
- support worth £105m for the rehabilitation and reinforcement of two existing roads in Cote D'Ivoire, and the construction of four bridges to improve trade links with neighbouring countries Ghana, Guinea, Liberia and Burkina Faso;
- UKEF support in the Ivory Coast enabled Dints International to win a contract worth €10m to supply the equipment needed for the construction of five high priority road networks in the Côte d'Ivoire;
- In Egypt, £1.2bn worth of support for the construction of two electric monorails supporting sustainable transport in Cairo, the largest amount of financing UKEF has provided on an overseas infrastructure project;
- In Cameroon, £115m-worth of support will improve trade links by widening the Douala Road from two to six lanes. The project will support the crucial trade route from the port at Douala, to the capital Yaoundé as well as to landlocked neighbours Chad and the Central African Republic;
- Northern Irish manufacturing company CDE Global won a multi-million-pound contract to expand production capacities at a sand wet processing quarry in Oueslatia, Central Tunisia with UKEF support.
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