In Burundi, a country often overlooked despite its potential, a single solar field is changing what’s possible for millions of vulnerable citizens. This first utility-scale solar project now supplies 10 percent of the country’s entire electricity supply. It powers hospitals, schools, businesses, and most importantly, it powers hope.
This didn’t happen by chance. It took courageous local leadership, the ingenuity of private investors, and one key ingredient: concessional finance that helped de-risk the project and unlock investment. For every one dollar of grant money deployed in project preparation, the Burundi project secured twenty-five dollars of investment. That’s a 1 to 25 leverage ratio in arguably one of the most challenging markets in the world.
The African Development Fund (ADF)—the low-cost financing arm of the African Development Bank—was created for this very purpose: to channel patient, risk-tolerant capital to Africa’s poorest and most fragile countries. Its upcoming replenishment cycle, known as ADF-17, is our best opportunity to replicate and scale this kind of catalytic impact across the continent. As the G20 gets underway in South Africa this week, the replenishment of the African Development Fund is one of the most important and tangible steps that the international community can take now to accelerate African economic and social development through 2030.
Burundi’s breakthrough shows what can happen when public and private capital work together. But it also reveals how much more needs to be done. Today, 600 million Africans still lack access to electricity. This is a barrier to economic growth, job creation, healthcare, education, and human dignity. Without reliable power, clinics can’t store vaccines, agricultural produce rot without adequate cool storage, children can’t study at night, and entrepreneurs can’t grow their businesses. Energy poverty is economic poverty.
African governments understand the scale of the challenge, but most don’t have the fiscal ability to solve it alone. Many countries on the continent are already struggling with high debt, currency volatility, and limited creditworthiness. Even with ambitious national energy plans, private investors often hesitate, deterred by risks exaggerated by flawed global financial systems.
Between 2016 and 2021, African countries raised significant capital from international markets but are now paying $56 billion more in interest than they would have under concessional terms from institutions like the African Development Bank and the World Bank. The problem isn’t merely reckless borrowing; it’s a global financing system that systematically inflates risk for African nations, forcing them to pay unfairly high costs for the capital they need.
This is exactly why concessional finance is critical—not as charity, but as catalytic investment. Grants, guarantees, technical assistance, and especially project preparation funds can tip the balance, making projects financially viable and investment-ready where otherwise they wouldn’t be. The right blend of concessional and private finance unlocks opportunity in places long excluded from global investment flows.
The ADF is one of the most effective tools we have to get this right. For example, ADF supported operations completed in 2023 have enabled access to electricity for nearly half a million people. The Fund has also made significant investments in renewable energy to accelerate the energy transition and champion green energy through regional power interconnections. But much more is needed.
A fully funded ADF-17 replenishment is now essential to scaling this progress. As the ADF-17 project pipeline and financing envelope take shape ahead of the pledging session in December, it bears repeating that a well-resourced ADF can help countries deploy their allocation to unlock tens of billions more in actual project financing on the ground. The formula is simple: with concessional finance and project preparation grants, high-risk projects become bankable. Fragile markets become investable.
This is not just about megawatts or numbers on a balance sheet. It is about real lives transformed — students studying at night, farmers refrigerating crops so they won’t spoil, mothers giving birth safely under electric lights, businesses creating jobs, and entire communities stepping into the modern economy.
The African Development Bank stands apart as Africa’s own institution—owned by African countries, driven by African priorities. The ADF-17 replenishment is an opportunity for the global community to partner with Africa for transformative, lasting change. Full funding for ADF-17 isn’t a request for aid; it’s a strategic investment in Africa’s enormous potential.
Burundi’s story shows that even in the toughest environments, solutions are possible with the right blend of leadership and financing. Africa doesn’t need charity. It needs catalytic capital to unlock the energy and enterprise of its people. ADF-17 is our opportunity to deliver that and to light the path forward for millions more people by 2030.
