The Financial Times will convene African political and business leaders, investors and policymakers in London this October for the 13th edition of the FT Africa Summit, scheduled for October 21-22, 2026, at The Landmark. Under the theme “Mobilising Growth in a New Global Order,” the summit arrives as African economies navigate shifting U.S. tariff policies, the impending expiry of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), evolving global supply chains and intensified competition among major powers for the continent’s markets and natural resources.
Confirmed speakers include Aliko Dangote, president and chief executive of Dangote Group; Taiwo Oyedele, Nigeria’s Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy; former Senegalese President Macky Sall; former Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete; Baroness Jennifer Chapman, UK Minister of State for International Development and Africa; and Ahmed Shide, Ethiopia’s Minister of Finance. The agenda will center on how African economies can mobilise domestic and international capital to finance infrastructure, manufacturing, energy and digital transformation while reducing reliance on volatile external financing.
Discussions will also address the changing global Trade environment. African governments and businesses are increasingly seeking to deepen intra-African commerce and strengthen economic ties with the Gulf, China and India. A core challenge for policymakers is whether the continent can convert its growing strategic importance into greater economic value. Africa’s critical minerals, offshore energy discoveries and expanding consumer markets are attracting global interest, yet weak infrastructure, financing constraints and limited local processing capacity continue to restrict value creation.
The summit will further examine Africa’s manufacturing ambitions and digital economy as governments work to create jobs for a rapidly expanding working-age population. Africa is projected to have the world’s largest working-age population by 2050, presenting a potential demographic dividend that intensifies the need for investment in skills, infrastructure and productive employment.
David Pilling, FT Africa editor, said the summit brings together leaders, investors and innovators shaping the continent’s economic future. “As Africa’s growth begins to outpace much of the world, this year’s agenda examines how governments and businesses can mobilise the capital, infrastructure and partnerships needed to translate that growth into lasting progress,” he said. Alec Russell, FT foreign editor, noted Africa is navigating one of the most consequential shifts in the global economic order in a generation. “As long-standing trading certainties give way and new alliances form, the FT summit offers a forum for candid dialogue on the continent’s challenges and fresh thinking on the investment, trade and innovation that will define its next chapter,” he said.
London’s role as a global centre for finance and international affairs positions it as a natural meeting point for the African and global stakeholders assembled by the summit. By connecting policymakers, investors, development institutions and business leaders, the event aims to link perspectives from across the continent with broader conversations on capital, trade and partnership that are central to Africa’s next phase of growth.
