Deputy Finance Minister Thomas Nyarko Ampem has urged African leaders to reposition the continent as a hub for investment rather than a recipient of aid in financing its development agenda.
He said Africa’s transformation depends on the ability to unlock long-term capital at scale through stronger, more credible and better-integrated financial markets.
Speaking at the close of the two-day ACI World Congress in Accra, the Member of Parliament encouraged policymakers and market players to work towards making Africa an attractive destination for global investment capable of supporting sustained economic growth and stability.
“…Africa still receives a disproportionately small share of global capital flows. This must change. Africa must no longer be viewed merely as a destination for aid, but as a destination for investment,” he said.
Mr Nyarko Ampem noted that achieving this shift would require patient capital and more innovative financing structures, including deeper and more integrated bond markets, blended finance arrangements, venture capital, private equity, and other sustainable financing instruments.
“We want African capital to finance African transformation, and we want our financial markets to become engines of innovation, enterprise, and long-term prosperity,” he said.
Deputy Finance Minister Thomas Nyarko Ampem has called for stronger African financial systems capable of driving the continent’s development through locally mobilised capital.
Speaking at a financial sector engagement in Accra, he cited data from the African Development Bank (AfDB), which estimates that Africa faces an annual infrastructure financing gap of between US$68 billion and US$108 billion. He said this gap represents both a challenge and a major opportunity for liquidity management and long-term transformation.
With projections suggesting that one in four people globally will be African by 2051, he stressed the need for strong economies anchored in credible institutions, sound policy direction and fiscal discipline.
“Ultimately, financial markets must expand opportunity, finance innovation, support enterprise, and improve the lives of people,” he said, urging better use of Africa’s young population, expanding digital ecosystems, rapid urbanisation and untapped financial potential as strategic economic assets.
He noted that the key question was no longer about Africa’s potential, but whether its financial systems are sufficiently prepared to deliver transformation — including the depth of markets to mobilise private capital, institutional strength to sustain investor confidence, and policy frameworks that balance innovation with stability.
Mr Ampem also urged financial professionals, regulators, investors and innovators to use the Accra gathering as a platform to build partnerships and shape the financial architecture needed for the next phase of Africa’s growth.
He added that the future of global finance would increasingly be shaped in African cities such as Accra, Kigali, Lagos, Lusaka and Nairobi, saying it would belong to economies that are stable, innovative, resilient and forward-looking.
Ghana, he said, remains committed to supporting financial market integration across Africa through reforms aimed at strengthening institutional trust and channeling capital into infrastructure, technology, industrialisation, entrepreneurship and sustainable growth.
Reiterating his central message, he said: “We want African capital to finance African transformation, and we want our financial markets to become engines of innovation, enterprise, and long-term prosperity.”