Côte d’Ivoire Prime Minister Robert Beugré Mambé called for reforms to make Africa’s financial system more inclusive and efficient as the continent faces a $400 billion annual financing gap.

Mambé spoke on behalf of President Alassane Ouattara at the Consultative Dialogue on the New African Financial Architecture in Abidjan-Cocody on Thursday.

He said Africa holds nearly $4 trillion in domestic savings, though structural constraints continue to limit their effective use

He identified key barriers that include fragmented institutions, weak risk allocation and limited coordination between public and private capital.

The dialogue brought together senior financial leaders, including African Development Bank (AfDB) President Sidi Ould Tah, who has led stakeholder consultations since October 2025.

Mambé called for practical and ambitious reforms, with financial instruments that reflect African market realities. He pointed to rising capital costs and fiscal pressure across developing economies as factors that increase the need for new financing solutions.

He outlined four priorities that include stronger multilateral development banks, innovative financial tools, greater domestic resource mobilization and reforms to global financial governance.

Africa Must Finance Its Development

Ould Tah described the initiative as a step toward stronger financial sovereignty, stating that Africa must “finance its development in a more efficient and sovereign way.”

He emphasized the need to connect domestic savings to investment through structured platforms capable of operating at scale.

He added that Africa should retain more of its capital and channel it into businesses, value chains and entrepreneurship to support jobs for young people and women.

He also highlighted long-term investment in energy, transport, digital systems and industrialization as essential to building resilient economies.