African and European business leaders have renewed their drive to strengthen cross-continental investment and build more resilient value chains, setting a fresh tone for cooperation under the EU’s Global Gateway initiative.
Their ambitions were set out in a Joint Business Declaration issued on 24 November during the AU–EU Business Forum 2025 in Luanda, held in the lead-up to the seventh Heads of State Summit.
This year’s Forum carries additional significance, marking a quarter-century of AU–EU partnership and coinciding with Angola’s 50th anniversary of independence. Centred on the theme of promoting peace and prosperity through effective multilateralism, the summit brings together Angolan President João Lourenço and European Council President António Costa as co-chairs, with Ursula von der Leyen representing the European Commission and H.E. Mahmoud Ali Youssouf representing the African Union.
The declaration underscores the need to advance both the EU’s Global Gateway strategy and Africa’s Agenda 2063. It also points to the substantial momentum already generated through the Africa–Europe Investment Package, which has mobilised almost €80 billion since 2021 to support renewable energy, health systems, transport networks, agribusiness, research, education and digital expansion.
Dr Amany Asfour, Co-chair of the Business Declaration Committee and President of the Africa Business Council, stressed the importance of building a more equal and mutually beneficial partnership as the two continents navigate shifting global economic priorities.
“We need equal win-win partnerships that empowers our African Private Sector including SMEs, women and youth and focusing on investment that is geared towards value addition, job creation and sharing of know-how,” she said.
Business organisations emphasised that unlocking the full potential of EU investment and closing Africa’s infrastructure gap will require practical, business-driven solutions.
The declaration calls for structured and inclusive mechanisms enabling companies from both continents to jointly design, finance and implement major trade and investment projects aligned with the African Continental Free Trade Area and Agenda 2063.
Financing remains central to the strategy. The document states that the Global Gateway Investment Hub should simplify access to EU financial instruments—such as blended finance, guarantees, venture capital and reimbursable grants—particularly for small and medium-sized enterprises. It urges a unified and transparent system to ensure that priority projects receive timely and effective support.
Africa’s industrialisation and the transformation of raw materials feature prominently in the business leaders’ demands. Benoît Chervalier, President of the Africa Committee of BusinessEurope and co-chair of the declaration, stated: “This process should be undertaken in a pragmatic, flexible and agile manner which would help to integrate African and European businesses into regional and global value chains.”
The declaration also calls for joint efforts to improve the business climate, strengthen workforce capacity, expand sustainable infrastructure and boost digital connectivity. Both continents, it notes, recognise that sustainable investment must generate local value, industrial growth and decent employment.
