CBN Governor Yemi Cardoso appointed AFC Chairman

The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Yemi Cardoso, has been appointed as the Chairman of the Africa Finance Corporation (AFC).

AFC President and CEO, Samaila Zubairu, disclosed the appointment on Wednesday on the sidelines of the IMF meeting in Bangkok, Thailand.

Cardoso replaces Mrs Ireti Samuel-Ogbu, who has chaired the AFC Board since April 2025.

AFC also confirmed the appointment in an official statement signed by its Corporate Communications Manager, Yewande Thorpe.

Nigeria’s role in AFC

Nigeria has a central role in the corporation, which was established in 2007 through an agreement among African sovereign states to mobilise private sector investment for infrastructure development and industrialisation.

With his appointment, Cardoso becomes the sixth Nigerian to be named Chairman of the Board of Directors of the AFC since the institution was founded in 2007.

Other Nigerians who have occupied the position in the past include former CBN Governor and current Governor of Anambra State, Chukwuma Soludo (2007); former CBN Deputy Governor (Economic Policy), Sarah Alade; and former CBN Deputy Governor (Financial System Stability), Joseph Nnanna, who succeeded Sarah Alade in March 2017.

Others are Former GMD/CEO of Union Bank of Nigeria, Emeka Emuwa, who was appointed in February 2024, and former Citi institutional leader in Nigeria, Ireti Samuel-Ogbu, appointed in April 2025.

Commenting on the appointment, Samaila Zubairu, President & CEO of AFC, said: “We are delighted to welcome Mr Cardoso as our Board Chairman. He shares our conviction that Africa’s lasting stability depends on its productive capacity.

• “His leadership will strengthen AFC as we advance The Africa We Build 2050, mobilising African capital to build the infrastructure and industries that create jobs, prosperity and dignity for our people. We also sincerely thank Mrs Samuel-Ogbu for her dedication and contribution to AFC’s board during her tenure.”

Cardoso also reacted to his appointment, saying a more productive Africa is a more stable Africa. According to him, AFC has the credibility and track record to mobilise capital and build the infrastructure and industries that drive transformation.

• “I look forward to working with the Board, management and member states to advance The Africa We Build 2050. Our measure of success must be the productive capacity we create, the industries we enable and the jobs we support,” he said.

AFC’s strategic investments

Headquartered in Lagos under a host-country agreement with the Federal Government, AFC provides debt and equity financing, project development support, financial advisory services and other funding solutions for infrastructure projects across the continent.

The corporation focuses on five major sectors: power, natural resources, heavy industry, transport and logistics, and telecommunications.

The corporation reported that it had invested more than $19 billion across 36 African countries since inception, while its membership expanded to 48 countries in 2025.

• In May this year, Nairametrics reported that the AFC had approved a commitment of up to $100 million to invest in Africa-focused technology fund managers, in a move aimed at increasing local institutional participation in the continent’s fast-growing venture capital ecosystem.
• The investment came as Africa’s digital economy is projected to contribute more than $700 billion to the continent’s GDP by 2050, driven by a rapidly expanding digital population and rising technology adoption by businesses.
• According to AFC, the new capital commitment was designed to address the persistent shortage of long-term institutional funding that continues to limit the growth and scaling of African technology companies despite increasing investor interest in the sector.
• The corporation said it would deploy catalytic capital into leading Africa-focused technology funds, with particular emphasis on African-owned fund managers, in a bid to deepen local ownership within the venture capital ecosystem and reduce dependence on foreign investors.
• In August, asset management subsidiary of the corporation, AFC Capital Partners (ACP), launched the Infrastructure Climate-Resilient Fund Nigeria (ICRF Nigeria) as a dedicated platform to mobilise domestic institutional capital for investment in climate-resilient infrastructure projects across Nigeria and the wider African continent.

Registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as a closed-end fund, ICRF Nigeria is designed to channel capital from pension fund administrators (PFAs), insurers, asset managers and other Nigerian institutional investors towards a diversified portfolio of commercially viable high-impact infrastructure opportunities.