President William Ruto has called on African nations to strengthen homegrown financial institutions, saying they hold the key to ending the continent’s dependence on Western lenders like the IMF and World Bank.
Speaking during the opening of the 24th COMESA Summit of Heads of State and Government at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre in Nairobi, Dr. Ruto said Africa must “finance its own development on terms that reflect our realities, our priorities, and our aspirations.”
He noted that the global financial system is still dominated by wealthy nations and “remains trapped in the architecture of a bygone era.” The president argued that the current structure, created after World War II, has left developing countries with “a limited voice and persistent inequities.”
To strengthen regional economic independence, Kenya has raised its shareholding in the Trade and Development Bank (TDB) by $100 million (KSh12.9 billion) and committed an additional $50 million (KSh6.5 billion) to Afreximbank. Dr. Ruto said these investments would allow Kenya to access affordable, long-term loans of up to 25 years at interest rates as low as two percent.
The president said African-led institutions such as TDB, Afreximbank, Africa Finance Corporation, Shelter Afrique, Africa Reinsurance, and ZEP-RE represent “the continent’s true partners in progress.” He explained that empowering these entities will deepen financial integration and unlock new opportunities for growth across Africa.
Ruto also urged African governments to push for full continental integration, noting that trade and investment cannot thrive without the free movement of people and goods. “The reason why we are not trading with ourselves is because we have unlimited barriers,” he said.
He expressed concern that Africa contributes only three percent to global trade and just 14 percent to intra-African trade. By contrast, Europe records 70 percent and Asia 60 percent. “In the European Union, 27 countries have a single visa, while COMESA also has 27 countries but with 27 visas,” he said, underscoring the need for harmonised mobility policies.
President Ruto concluded that Africa’s economic transformation depends on its ability to mobilise its own capital and speak with one voice in global financial negotiations. “These institutions embody our collective determination to mobilise African capital for African priorities,” he affirmed.
