Angola mobilises less than 40% of the $14 billion it requires annually to meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the commitments of the Africa 2063 Agenda, leaving the country with a financing gap of $8.6 billion, the African Development Bank (AfDB) revealed in a report released on Monday (21).
According to the “Country Focus Report 2026 – Mobilising Development Finance for Angola at Scale in a Fragmented World”, presented in Luanda, the $14 billion figure represents Angola’s total annual financing requirements to fulfil its SDG commitments and Africa 2063 obligations.
The AfDB noted that the deficit does not stem solely from insufficient resources, but also from Angola’s “limited capacity to mobilise, intermediate and effectively utilise available capital at scale”.
Investment levels, estimated at 10.6% of GDP in 2025, “remain below what is needed to sustain Angola’s development”, the institution added.
The report identifies weak financial intermediation, inadequate project preparation, deficiencies in competitive procurement processes, a highly informal economy, and a scarcity of long-term financing sources as key drivers of the deficit.
The document also highlights that domestic savings, estimated at 15.7% in 2025, are “largely underutilised”, while access to concessional external financing is “increasingly limited and at elevated interest rates”, against a backdrop of heightened global uncertainty.
Furthermore, the AfDB observes that low domestic resource mobilisation, capital flight, and underdeveloped domestic capital markets continue to impede the conversion of savings into productive investment.
In its analysis, the AfDB nevertheless emphasises the “strong resilience” of the Angolan economy, “reflected in improved macroeconomic stability and growth of 3.1% in 2025, heavily driven by the non-oil sector”.
Between 2020 and 2025, fiscal deficits remained below 3% of gross domestic product (GDP), while average annual inflation fell from 25.8% to 8.79%. Over the same period, the public debt-to-GDP ratio declined from 119% to below 50%, the report notes.
The document also points to “some progress” in social indicators, particularly in life expectancy, which rose from 62 to 65 years, and in reductions in maternal and infant mortality. According to the AfDB, these “gains, though modest”, contributed to an improvement in Angola’s United Nations Human Development Index score in 2025.
“Investment levels estimated at 10.6% in 2025 remain below what is needed to sustain Angola’s development” — African Development Bank
The AfDB considers that, despite the challenges posed by the current geopolitical fragmentation, Angola’s growth prospects have become “more favourable”, supported by the recovery in oil prices. The institution cites the latest projection from the Banco Nacional de Angola, which points to real GDP growth of 6.15% in 2026. However, it cautions that this rate “remains insufficient to ensure a significant reduction in poverty and to address the country’s development needs”.
“Angola is estimated to need to grow at least 7% per year to keep pace with rapid population growth of approximately 3.5% per year, while mobilising sufficient resources to finance infrastructure investment needs”, the African Development Bank states.
According to the AfDB, the central challenge lies in transforming the current growth momentum into a higher, more sustainable and inclusive trajectory, supported by economic diversification and productivity gains. The institution considers Angola’s financial system to remain underdeveloped, fragmented, and concentrated in urban areas, which constrains capital mobilisation and inclusive growth.
The AfDB adds that, despite “evident progress” in reforms and risk mitigation, gaps remain in regulatory capacity and institutional coordination. In this context, it argues that Angola stands to benefit from stronger partnerships with multilateral development banks.
Source: Diário Económico
Original article: https://www.diarioeconomico.co.mz/2026/09/22/mundo/angola/angola-pais-mobiliza-menos-de-40-dos-14-mm-necessarios-para-financiar-ods/
