The Financial Times and the World Bank Group’s Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) have launched a new awards programme to promote ground-breaking, long-term solutions to development challenges in Africa.
Africa has one of the fastest-growing regional economies, boosted by, rapid technological change, a young population, rich natural resources and one of the world’s highest rates of entrepreneurship. Yet many communities remain extremely poor and affected by conflict and the impacts of climate change.
The Africa Sustainable Futures Awards will recognise innovative and financially viable projects and initiatives that provide transformative solutions to some of the biggest development issues facing the continent today. The inaugural awards will focus on entrepreneurship, innovation and investment that can provide access to clean energy and digital connectivity and ensure that urban infrastructure and natural ecosystems remain resilient to climate change. The programme will also highlight the importance of gender equality and inclusion in boosting development.
David Pilling, Africa editor of the Financial Times and co-chair of the Africa Sustainable Futures Awards judging panel, said: “These new awards will highlight promising initiatives in Africa to tackle challenging issues on climate and inclusion of the poorest communities. We especially welcome entries from organisations that provide solutions in fragile and conflict-affected states.”
Ethiopis Tafara, Vice President & Chief Risk, Legal and Sustainability Officer, and Partnerships at MIGA, and fellow judging panel co-chair, said: "I am looking forward to seeing the ingenuity of private sector players that the awards we are launching today will bring to the global stage. The judging panel will recognize organizations that are creating ground-breaking business models and solutions that tackle Africa’s key development challenges while achieving long-term impact and scale within and across continents."
Entries will be accepted until 31 July 2024 in the following categories:
- Financing access to clean energy
- Resilient infrastructure
- Biodiversity and ecosystems protection
- Gender equality and inclusion
- Digital infrastructure
Entry forms and criteria will be available at the end of April at africasustainablefuturesawards.live.ft.com.
Only initiatives that have been implemented since 2018 will be eligible. Entries must have annual revenues of at least $3 million or investment of at least $5 million to be eligible.
Entries will also be accepted for the Innovation Showcase, a special category designed to promote exciting new ideas from Africa’s startups that do not yet have adequate funding.
The winner in each category will be announced at a special awards dinner on 30 October 2024, which will conclude the FT’s Africa Summit, a major event bringing together African governments, businesses and finance leaders with global investors and industry partners to collaborate on opportunities for long-term, sustainable growth.
Members of the high-level judging panel for the awards will be announced shortly.
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For more information, please contact:
Mark Staniland | mark.staniland@ft.com
Elizabeth Howton | ehowton@worldbankgroup.org
About the Financial Times:
The Financial Times is one of the world’s leading business news organisations, recognised internationally for its authority, integrity and accuracy. The FT has a record paying readership of 1.2 million, more than one million of which are digital subscriptions. It is part of Nikkei Inc., which provides a broad range of information, news and services for the global business community.
About MIGA
MIGA was created in 1988 as a member of the World Bank to promote foreign direct investment in emerging economies by helping to mitigate the risks of restrictions on currency conversion and transfer, breach of contract by governments, expropriation, and war and civil disturbance; and offering credit enhancement to private investors and lenders. Since its creation, MIGA has issued over $81 billion in guarantees across 123 developing countries, supporting more than 1,000 projects. Over the past decade, MIGA’s guarantees have helped provide new or improved electricity services to more than 78 million people. For more information, please visit: https://www.miga.org