European Investment Bank (EIB), invested €3.1 billion across Africa in 2025 to support small businesses, clean energy, key infrastructure and health, according to the Bank. The financing is part of more than €9 billion deployed globally last year and is closely aligned with national priorities and the EU’s Global Gateway strategy.
The bulk of EIB Global’s African portfolio focused on credit lines for small and medium‑sized enterprises, venture capital funds, sustainable energy, transport, water and health. Almost half of all activity (46 per cent) was dedicated to climate action and environmental sustainability. Morocco, Nigeria and Mauritania were among the top beneficiaries, alongside Egypt and Malawi, while smaller states such as The Gambia, São Tomé and Príncipe, and Cabo Verde also received targeted support.
Flagship projects ranged from blue economy investments in Mauritania and Cabo Verde to backing cocoa and agricultural value chains in Côte d’Ivoire, Sierra Leone and Guinea, with a strong focus on SMEs, women and youth. In Cameroon, new finance improved rural electricity access for more than 1.6 million people. In Morocco, EIB Global financed climate‑resilient drinking water systems and a large post‑earthquake recovery programme for schools, hospitals, roads and other essential infrastructure. In Egypt, support included a grant to help decarbonise industry, the Obelisk solar and battery project – set to become Africa’s largest – and investment in a North Africa private equity fund.
Health and human development were another pillar. EIB Global signed a guarantee deal with MedAccess to widen access to essential medical supplies and backed mRNA vaccine production in Rwanda, building on earlier vaccine manufacturing initiatives in Senegal and Ghana. In Angola, it helped finance a landmark campaign to vaccinate more than two million girls against cervical cancer. Through the Boost Africa initiative, the Bank also supported venture capital training at Oxford University’s Saïd Business School and committed over €350 million to new funds, many targeting innovative businesses led by young people and women.
EIB leaders say these “win‑win partnerships” are meant to deliver visible, high‑impact projects that communities feel on the ground. Over the past four years, the Bank’s investments have mobilised an estimated €73 billion across Africa, and in 2025 it hit its €100 billion Global Gateway mobilisation goal ahead of the 2027 deadline. Alongside direct lending and technical advice, the EIB also works with other development banks to share data on risk in emerging markets, aiming to attract more private capital into African economies on the basis of evidence rather than outdated perceptions.
