ECA Chief Calls for Financial Instruments That Reflect Africa’s Development Needs

Addis Ababa, July 1, 2025 (ENA) -- Executive Secretary of the UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), Claver Gatete has urged a shift from rhetoric to results, calling for financial instruments that reflect Africa’s development needs.

Speaking at a joint side event hosted by the UN’s five regional commissions at the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4) in Seville, Spain, he said the continent is already piloting solutions, but global financing systems must adapt.

Innovative financing instruments are no longer optional. They are essential,” Gatete said, underscoring that “the current system continues to limit Africa’s access to affordable finance, despite the continent’s investment potential and development needs.

He also underscored the importance of country platforms that align national priorities, improve coordination across ministries, and provide the transparency needed to attract long term investment.

“Unlocking private finance requires more than good ideas. It requires trust, coherence, and credible institutions,” he said.

The side event was part of a broader push by the five UN regional commissions - ECA, ECE, ECLAC, ESCAP and ESCWA - to emphasize regional solutions to global development finance challenges.

Their joint policy brief, Road to Seville, outlines proposals across five areas: domestic resource mobilization, debt sustainability, global economic governance, international cooperation and private finance, according to ECA.