By Shruti Menon Seeboo
Following his address at the 7th Annual Africa Pension Funds and Retirement Summit 2026 in Mauritius, George Aoko, the Flagship Projects and PIDA Coordinator at the African Union Commission’s Infrastructure and Energy Department, elaborates on the strategic mechanisms required to unlock domestic institutional backing for cross-border development. In these interview excerpts, Aoko details the structural changes and capital market deepenings essential to addressing the pension fund liquidity puzzle, alongside progress updates on the 69 regional projects making up the $170 billion PIDA-PAP 2 portfolio. He further breaks down the implementation of the Integrated Corridor Approach across energy, transport, and digital networks, the deployment of climate-resilient evaluation tools like the PIDA Quality Label, and the vital role of financial ecosystems like Mauritius in pioneering the blended finance models needed to advance the continent’s infrastructure agenda.
1.We are here at a summit representing over USD 1 trillion in institutional capital, yet pension fund allocation to continental infrastructure remains low. From the African Union Commission’s perspective, what structural changes or credit-enhancement tools are needed to make domestic pension trustees comfortable backing long-term cross-border infrastructure?
At the African Union Commission, we believe the strategic pathway forward requires five major shifts. First, we must strengthen early project preparation facilities and project derisking mechanism so as to ensure a pipeline of investment-ready projects. This will lead to stronger feasibility studies and better transaction structuring.
Secondly, we must deepen Africa’s capital markets to address pension funds liquidity puzzle. Infrastructure projects are long-duration assets, while pension funds must maintain sufficient liquidity to meet member obligations. Developing active secondary markets for infrastructure instruments like stronger project bond markets, infrastructure funds, green bonds, securitisation vehicles and cross-border investment platforms capable of mobilising institutional capital at scale will be essential. Finally, harmonised legal frameworks, credible procurement systems and improved project governance.
2. As we move through the timeline for the Priority Action Plan (PIDA-PAP 2), where are you seeing the most successful regional integration happening right now, and where do we urgently need to unblock operational or financial bottlenecks?
With 69 projects valued at $170Billion the opportunities are largely in the Energy sector followed by transport, digital and water. The East, West and Southern regions are leading the pack as the western and central region follow closely. The Energy sector has an annual investment need of $40-70 billion, and a market size of over $300 billion. This is followed by the transport and logistics sector with an annual investment need of $35-50 billion, and a market size of over $180 billion.
The digital technology sector has an annual investment need of$15-25 billion, and a market size of over $180 billion. Lastly water and sanitation, an annual investment need of $30-50 billion, and a market size/opportunity of over $150 billion.
3. Physical and logistical integration is vital to making the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) a success. How is the PIDA framework prioritizing the harmonization of cross-border transport corridors to significantly cut down transit times and costs?
Harmonisation is key to regional integration. PIDA PAP2 adopted the Integrated Corridor Approach as a model for implementing regional projects. This is being complimented by sector specific approaches like the inter-operability standards under the Africa Integrated Railway Network (AIRN), Road transport harmonization programme, Single Africa Air Transport Market (SAATM), Africa Single Electricity Market (AfSEM) to connect the power pools.
4. The AUC infrastructure portfolio covers energy, transport, and digitisation. How is your team planning to integrate physical logistics networks—like roads and rail lines—with the digital infrastructure and data connectivity needed to support a modern African market?
The integrated Corridor Approach seeks to ensure that a transport corridor which should include all viable modes (Road, rail, air, maritime) is connected with sufficient energy supply and digital infrastructure to make it fully functional to support the economic activities and industrial value chains that its developed facilitate. It is for this reason that PIDA coordinates the portfolio having all the four key infrastructure sectors in transport, energy, water and digital.
5. With the push for the African Single Electricity Market (AfSEM) alongside physical transmission lines, balancing industrial energy needs with climate resilience is a massive task. How is your office evaluating upcoming transboundary energy projects to ensure they are both climate-resilient and economically viable?
PIDA has developed a number of project evaluation tools and policy documents to guide in national and regional projects selection process. Among them are the PIDA Quality Label (PQL) and the Continental Policy for Resilient and Smart Infrastructure. The PIDA energy portfolio also has a wide range of energy sources and generation mix of projects from hydropower, solar, wind, oil and gas. The energy division is also championing and advancing other energy sources like nuclear, green hydrogen and geothermal which form part of the continent’s energy sources.
6. Mauritius positions itself as a key financial hub for structuring continental investment. How does the AU Commission view the role of the Mauritian financial ecosystem in driving the blended finance models needed for these major infrastructure projects?
Mauritius is a good example of what happens when we are able to mobilize and deploy our domestic capital to finance our development agenda especially in the infrastructure space. Further, through the four days of the summit, it has become evident that a number of the African countries have pension funds already invested in infrastructure.
What is therefore needed on the part of the AU Commission with regard to its 5% Agenda is to continue a continental engagement on how this can be advanced to drive the blended finance models needed to the major infrastructure project in Africa with the support of the case study pension funds like Mauritius, Zambia and others.
