Other public sector financing

Beyond African national budgets and ICA member institutions, infrastructure receives commitments from other international financial institutions, bilateral public partners and development funds. These flows are a distinct part of Africa’s financing landscape and should not be combined with ICA member totals.

Non-ICA public financing

Non-ICA public financing supported transport, energy, water and sanitation, ICT and multisector investments during 2021–2023. The chart below shows how the sectoral distribution changed by year; it does not capture all public financing, which is also recorded under national governments and ICA members.

Arab Coordination Group institutions

Arab Coordination Group institutions outside ICA membership committed approximately US$1.7 billion in 2021, US$859 million in 2022 and US$472 million in 2023. The report separates these institutions from the Islamic Development Bank, whose contributions are included under ICA members, to avoid double counting.

Changing Chinese commitments

Chinese infrastructure financing declined in 2021 and 2022. The report indicates that commitments from non-ICA Arab Coordination Group institutions exceeded Chinese commitments in both years. This illustrates a change in the composition of recorded external public financing, rather than the disappearance of Chinese participation.

Why financing diversity matters

Different public financiers offer different instruments and operate under different mandates. A diverse financing base can help governments and project sponsors assemble support for projects whose preparation, risk profile or expected returns make purely private finance difficult. The reported commitments should be read as one measure of that contribution, not as a measure of completed projects.