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Africa needs about $277 billion annually to meet its climate commitments but currently attracts only about $30 billion in climate finance, highlighting a funding gap that requires urgent mobilisation of private and institutional capital, Sahara Power Enterprise Group has said.
Group Managing Director of Sahara Power Enterprise Group, Kola Adesina, disclosed this at a United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) roundtable on Sustainable Global Investment, Economic Resilience and Climate Financing, where he called for stronger investment in Africa’s productive sectors to drive sustainable growth and withstand economic and climate shocks.
Adesina said the continent’s development challenges could not be addressed through climate finance alone, stressing the need for coordinated investment in energy, infrastructure, industry, agriculture and enterprise development.
“Africa’s most pressing challenge is expanding its productive capacity at scale. We need sustained investment in energy, infrastructure, industry, agriculture, and enterprise development to create jobs, strengthen competitiveness, and support long-term resilience,” he said.
The financing challenge is compounded by Africa’s infrastructure deficit, with almost 600 million people in sub-Saharan Africa lacking access to electricity and the continent facing an estimated annual infrastructure financing gap of between $68 billion and $108 billion.
Adesina said climate finance should therefore be viewed as an enabler of broader economic resilience, particularly as African countries contend with droughts, floods, extreme heat and other climate-related risks.
He noted that Africa contributes less than four per cent of global greenhouse-gas emissions but remains highly exposed to the effects of climate change.
“Africa requires substantial investment not only to grow, but also to protect the infrastructure, businesses, food systems, and communities that underpin development,” he said.
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According to him, the global investment market presents an opportunity to bridge the financing gap, with foreign direct investment reaching approximately $1.6 trillion in 2025, while assets linked to sustainable investment strategies rose to $16.7 trillion globally.
He said Africa must position itself to attract a greater share of such capital by improving project preparation, strengthening investment frameworks and developing financing structures capable of converting investment interest into bankable projects.
Adesina also called for increased mobilisation of African institutional capital, deeper local-currency financing markets and stronger regional collaboration in energy, transport and logistics infrastructure.
He said Sahara’s experience demonstrated the importance of combining energy investment with longer-term sustainability objectives, citing its investments in LNG, LPG, gas-to-power infrastructure and logistics.
The company, he added, was pursuing a net-zero ambition by 2060 through strategic gas infrastructure development, renewable energy integration and nature-based solutions.
The UNGA discussion aligns with Sahara’s Beyond XXX platform, which focuses on sustainable development through investment, innovation, talent, collaboration, environmental stewardship and solutions designed to create long-term value across Africa and beyond.
Adesina said the ultimate objective should be to ensure that capital deployed in Africa translates into productive capacity, jobs, reliable infrastructure and durable economic growth.
“Africa’s opportunity lies in building resilient prosperity, where investment translates into productive capacity, jobs, reliable infrastructure, and sustainable economic growth that endures for generations,” he said.
