Africa must invest in Africa if it wants to shape its own future
By Charles Mishetto
The Africa Unlocked 2025 Conference took place last week in Cape Town, South Africa. It was not just another meeting. It was a clear signal – a signal that Africa is no longer waiting for solutions from elsewhere; a signal that the continent is ready to invest in itself.
For two days, African entrepreneurs, investors, bankers and policymakers engaged in honest conversations. They tackled the issues that have held the continent back for years. How do we grow trade among African countries? How do we close energy and infrastructure gaps? How do we finance African businesses and feed a growing population? And finally, how can we support family-owned business to have a lasting legacy?
The second edition of the Africa Unlocked Conference featured a number of prominent speakers and panellists. I was captivated by a number of anecdotes shared by these industry titans, including our Group CEO, Mr Sim Tshabalala. His message hasn’t changed. He is and has been very optimistic about the fortunes of the continent.
Latest data shows that Africa’s growth potential is huge. Africa does not lack ideas nor does it lack natural resources and the requisite talent. What it lacks is self-belief and coordinated execution. This was the underlying message at the Africa Unlocked Conference. From renewable energy and agri-processing to digital logistics and regional banking solutions, the continent already has many of the answers. What is missing is scale and investment from within.
One might wonder: What is in it for the business community in Tanzania? Well, this has everything to do with the country’s fortunes. We are among the fastest-growing economies on the continent, with 15 percent of African countries relying on Tanzania’s logistics infrastructure for trade through its ports, waterways and land channels. We must thus stop viewing faraway global markets as the only sure way of growing. Other African countries are not just neighbours. They are economic partners and we must take full advantage of our geographical position. East Africa has already shown the way and is currently the regional block with the highest intra-regional trade.
For regional trade to thrive, this collaboration must extend beyond infrastructure to include joint investment in customs efficiency, warehousing, cross-border finance and reliable energy supply. Tanzania has begun to make strides, but greater coordination and urgency are needed. A cohesive national strategy — co-created by government and industry — is key to aligning trade, logistics, policy and finance and turning potential into performance. The gradual implementation of the Africa continental free trade agreement is a much-needed catalyst. However, the foundation has to be strong to avoid historical pitfalls as we expand trade with the rest of the continent.
The conference made another point clear. Without strong small and medium businesses, there will be no inclusive growth. About 90 percent of businesses in Tanzania are classified as SMEs and we are happy to see a number of initiatives taken by the Government of Tanzania to improve the operating environment for SMEs. This includes allocation of Sh130Bio through the National Five-Year Development Plan (FYDP III, 2021-25) for capacity building, soft loans and subsidised capital. However, the private sector, especially financial services providers, have an important role to play through innovative products that ease stringent borrowing requirements. Stanbic Bank Tanzania has numerous offerings aligned to this theme and continues to innovate internally and externally through various partners. Our Business Incubator Division is a testament to our commitment to empowering SMEs.
Trade within Africa is still less than one fifth of total exports. That is not just a statistic. It is a warning. We are not selling to each other enough, we are not financing our own industries and we are waiting for others to fill the gap.
Tanzania can no longer afford to wait. We cannot talk about Africa’s growth potential without mentioning its vibrant population. Africa is a young continent and with a long history of strong women who have supported households through farming, trade and other economic activities. Empowering women and equipping young people with access to capital, skills and digital infrastructure is not just good policy; it is smart economics. For Tanzania to fully realise its potential, unlocking local enterprise and human capital must go hand in hand with attracting external investment.
Last but not least is the subject that I am quite passionate with, which is building scalable businesses in Tanzania. Banks and other stakeholders must make concerted efforts to support these ventures, given the fact that most African countries have underdeveloped capital markets, making banks the major, if not the only, source of capital needed to propel growth. Standard Bank’s HEAD of Family Office reaffirmed the Group’s commitment to this cause.
We cannot build our future with borrowed confidence. We cannot expect others to believe in us before we believe in ourselves. This applies to policy, banks, pension funds and entrepreneurs.
Africa Unlocked 2025 showed that many of the solutions already exist on the continent. The next move belongs to us. Tanzania must not be left behind.
Charles Mishetto is Head of Commercial Banking at Stanbic Bank Tanzania. The views expressed in this article are his own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Stanbic Bank Tanzania or its affiliates
