2025 Ibrahim Forum theme

The 2025 Ibrahim Forum, held on Day 2 of the Ibrahim Governance Weekend, will focus on the theme "Leveraging Africa’s Resources to Close the Finance Gap”. 

This year’s discussions will build on the findings of the 2024 Forum Report, Financing Africa: where is the money?, this time putting the spotlight on the critical role of Africa’s resources in accelerating the continent’s development and transforming its position in the new global economy. 

This is not about Africa pleading for more money, but for smarter money, and, even more, putting its own resources at use. The 2025 Forum will explore the best ways and means to unlock and leverage Africa’s domestic resources and better attract private capital onto one of the world’s fastest growing markets. Given the current decline of international aid and the creaking multilateral system, discussions will mainly consider the ways and means: 

• To better leverage the continent’s domestic resources – from drying up illicit financial flows to strengthening tax systems and mobilising African sovereign and pension funds and remittances.
• To adequately monetise Africa’s substantial resources and assets.
• To address the structural barriers to investment on the continent.

As Africa shifts away from a model of dependency on external sources of finance, mobilising its own resources is key. A few weeks ahead of the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4), taking place in Seville 30 June-3 July, the 2025 Ibrahim Forum, and the parallel discussions to be held over the whole IGW, will endeavour to outline the African position on this critical challenge. 

The 2025 Ibrahim Governance Weekend will take place in Marrakech, Morocco, from 1-3 June.