Luanda — At the 2025 U.S.-Africa Business Summit in Luanda, we reflect on a week of impactful dialogue, high-level engagements, and landmark announcements that are shaping the future of U.S.-Africa economic partnerships.
The 2025 Summit marked a historic milestone in both scale and influence, with a record number of Heads of State and Government leaders in attendance. Twelve leaders, including Presidents and Prime Ministers, joined the high-level convening.
Beyond this unprecedented leadership turnout, the Summit welcomed continental representation from across Africa featuring Ministers, senior U.S. government officials, U.S. - African private sector executives and entrepreneurs. Included were influential voices from the African Union Commission, the African Development Bank, AUDA-NEPAD, and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
The Summit featured impactful sessions led by government officials, financing institutions, and business leaders. Discussions spanned economics, public-private partnerships, regional development, and the investment landscape, opening up bold conversations about the opportunities that lie ahead for U.S.-Africa trade, investment, and business.
ARCHIVE: Coverage from Previous CCA Summits and Conferences
Selection of Remarks
"Don't look at the perceptions, look at the data." - Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, President of the African Development Bank Group. Speaking at the 2025 U.S.-Africa Business Summit in Luanda
The future of business in Africa is not a question mark, it's an opportunity backed by strong fundamentals, rapid growth, and expanding consumer markets. Why data matters more than ever:
• Africa hosts 11 of the world's 20 fastest-growing economies
• Investment returns on infrastructure and tech in Africa are among the highest globally
• The continent's urban population is expected to double by 2050, creating strong consumer demand
• Africa's fintech, renewable energy, agribusiness, and creative sectors are attracting record levels of investment
• Institutional reforms and regional integration efforts (like AfCFTA) are improving ease of doing business.
"We are going to rely on our own domestic resources. We are developing policies to mobilize our own national resources." - H.E. Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, Chairperson, African Union Commission. Remarks delivered at the 2025 U.S.-Africa Business Summit in Luanda, Angola
Africa's long-term prosperity depends not only on external partnerships, but also on robust internal foundations. In his remarks, H.E. Youssouf highlighted the African Union's commitment to sustainable development through domestic resource mobilisation and homegrown policy solutions. Why this approach matters:
• It strengthens fiscal independence and policy autonomy
• It enhances the continent's ability to fund critical sectors like infrastructure, healthcare, and education
• It positions African economies as equal partners in global economic systems.
This is a vision of resilience and responsibility, focused on ensuring that Africa's growth is both sustainable and self-driven, while still welcoming meaningful global collaboration.
"There are business leaders in the U.S. who need to understand the opportunities that lie in doing business with Africa. Our mission going forward will be to find them - and bring them in." - Hon. Troy Fitrell, Senior Bureau Official, Bureau of African Affairs. Speaking at the 2025 U.S.-Africa Business Summit in Luanda
"Africa's economic momentum is undeniable, but to unlock its full potential, more U.S. business leaders must see it for what it is: a strategic growth market.
The mission now is to build bridges, strengthen networks, and turn interest into pathways to partnership and investment."
"The undertaking of the AfCFTA is an ambitious one. It has to be ambitious." - Mene Wamkele, AfCFTA Secretary‑General. Speaking at the 2025 #USAfricaBizSummit in Luanda.
This isn't just rhetoric. It reflects a reality:
- 54 nations, 1.3 billion people, US $3.4 trillion GDP
- 2023 intra‑Africa trade: US $192.2 billion (+3.2%), now 14.9%
- 2045 projection: +45% intra-African trade, +1.2% GDP
- Up to 30 million lifted from extreme poverty; US $450 billion income gains by 2035
With digital tools like PAPSS and initiatives like the Guided Trade Initiative, we're already seeing trade happen—across borders, in local currencies, for real impact.
Africa's transformation demands bold action. The AfCFTA is the blueprint and it must be ambitious.
