Africa-Press – Lesotho. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Saturday said Berlin will invest over €37 million ($42.63 million) in the African Trade and Investment Development Insurance (ATIDI) through development bank KfW, a move expected to mobilize up to $500 million in trade and investment between German firms and African markets.
“We will see even stronger trading links between Germany and African countries, more investment by German companies on the continent, more value creation in Africa,” he told a side event at the G20 Leaders’ Summit in Johannesburg, South Africa.
He said Germany currently supports economic reform projects in the G20-backed Compact with Africa (CwA) countries with more than €3.2 billion.
Under Berlin’s 2017 G20 Presidency, the CwA was launched to boost private investment and drive economic reforms across African nations.
“Now we see many success stories in many compact countries already, more investment, more jobs, but our task today and from now on to scale this up,” Merz said.
He said he would call it “a new phase,” or “Compact 2.0,” with Zambia and Angola joining this year, expanding the compact to 15 countries.
He congratulated Angolan President Joao Lourenco on joining the group.
“I trust that through this engagement, we will strengthen the compact,” South African Vice President Paul Mashatile said.
“We are confident that it will continue to unlock investments and help vigilant resilience,” he added.
African Union Commission Chair Mahmoud Ali Youssouf said the CwA offers an opportunity to implement reforms that attract investment and help achieve the objectives of the African Continental Free Trade Area protocol on investment.
He also urged a focus on priority sectors such as mineral resources to create decent jobs and generate income for millions of Africans.
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