Africa Forward Summit: €23bn in France-Africa Investments and Dangote’s Refinery Expansion

France’s Minister Delegate for Foreign Trade, Nicolas Forissier, described the 2026 Africa Forward Summit in Nairobi as a major success. Attendance topped 7,000—well above the 3,000–4,000 expected—and led to a joint investment pledge of €23 billion, split between €14 billion from France and €9 billion from African partners. Key sectors include infrastructure, energy, health, agriculture, food processing and digital technology. Forissier stressed France’s focus on building partnerships that create jobs rather than just selling goods. He highlighted plans to follow up on new contacts and multiply high-level meetings to drive sustainable growth and empower young Africans. Aliko Dangote, President of Dangote Industries, announced an expansion of Nigeria’s refinery capacity from 650,000 to 1.4 million barrels per day by 2028. He said boosting local refining and petrochemicals will help Africa capture more value instead of exporting raw materials and importing finished products. Dangote also warned that rising fertilizer prices and high national debts are squeezing African farmers. He urged diplomatic progress between Iran and the United States to ease global economic pressures.

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