African Takeaways from Global Gateway Forum 2023

The 1st Global Gateway Forum (#GGF2023) in Brussels was the perfect occasion to take stock of the progress of the program. In terms of attendance, the first edition of the GGF managed to attract 16 Heads of State or Government as well as representatives from international organizations such as the WTO, WHO, WB, EIB and AfDB.

Announced in 2021, the GG is the response of the EU to rival China’s #BRI. According to the statements released during the Forum, the #GlobalGateway (#GG) has managed to mobilize EUR 66 billion so far, compared to the USD 1 trillion of BRI. However, BRI already has a 10-year history while GG is only two years old.

During the two-day forum from 25-26 October 2023, deals worth EUR 3 billion were signed. EC President Ursula von der Leyen defended the GG by stressing that the EU is going for quality rather than quantity and the ‘amount is sufficient to make a difference.’

Among the contracts signed, we noted the following involving Africa:

• €1B fund with FinnFund to promote #digitalization in Africa
• €500M for Health Resilience
• €250M as initial funding on the #LobitoCorridor to secure access to #CriticalMinerals
• €246M for Greener and Sustainable Cabo Verde Program
• €146M for Kakono Hydropower Plant in Tanzania
• €134M for six African countries to promote local pharma production and vacinne equity
• €100M from KfW to support issue of Local Currency Bonds in Africa with the target to raise nearly €1B
• €89.5M for Action Plan in Somalia to promote economic development and social inclusion
• €72M for Action Plan in Kenya to enhance cybersecurity, renewable energy, good governance and human development
• €50M for Early-Childhood Development Program in Rwanda
• €46M for a Regional Facility for Teachers in Africa
• €20.4M for Green and Blue Pact with Comoros

The EU has partnered with the Gates Foundation to promote local production of medicines and vaccines. In particular, the plan is to apply the new #mRNA vaccine technologies to other diseases that are common in Africa such as malaria, tuberculosis and HIV-AIDS. The six African countries selected in this batch to receive funding under the EU #GlobalHeath program are: