After its own ratings agency, AU targets the 'Africa premium'
A day after launching the Africa Credit Rating Agency, the African Union gathered lenders in Mauritius to ask why the continent still pays more to borrow.
Port Louis — The African Union has begun looking past its new credit rating agency to the wider reasons African governments pay more than others to borrow.
The chairperson of the African Union Commission, Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, led a high-level meeting in Port Louis, Mauritius, on 8 October under the title "Beyond AfCRA: Improving the Africa Risk Premium". It came a day after he took part in the official launch of the Africa Credit Rating Agency.
What the premium is
The "Africa risk premium" is the extra interest that lenders charge African borrowers over and above what they charge others. The meeting examined its effect on both the cost of finance and how much of it is available.
The commission said the discussion pointed to "the need for a broader and more coordinated approach" to bringing that premium down and improving the terms on which the continent can borrow.
Who was in the room
Those taking part included the African Peer Review Mechanism, the UN Economic Commission for Africa, Afreximbank, the African Development Bank and the Open Society Foundations.
The initiative under discussion is being called the De-risking Africa Initiative.
What was decided
The commission's account of the meeting does not record any decisions or a timetable. It describes a shared view that a ratings agency alone will not be enough.
Source: African Union Commission, 8 October 2026.
