Macron Unveils $27bn Africa Investment Plan as France Seeks New Era of Partnership

French President Emmanuel Macron has announced a massive €23 billion ($27 billion) investment package for Africa during a high-profile summit in Kenya, as France attempts to rebuild its influence on the continent amid growing competition from China, Russia, and other global powers.

Speaking at the Africa Forward Summit in Nairobi, Macron said the investments would support sectors including energy transition, agriculture, technology, artificial intelligence, and infrastructure development across Africa. The two-day summit brought together leaders from more than 30 African nations alongside executives from major French and African companies.

According to Macron, €14 billion ($16.4 billion) of the investment will come from French public and private companies, while €9 billion ($10.5 billion) will be contributed by African investors and institutions. He said the projects are expected to create approximately 250,000 jobs across both Africa and France.

“We are not simply here to come and invest on the African continent,” Macron told delegates at Nairobi’s convention centre. “We need great African business leaders to come and invest in France.”

The summit marks a significant diplomatic shift for France, which hosted the event in an English-speaking African country for the first time. Analysts say the move reflects Paris’s attempt to redefine its relationship with Africa after years of deteriorating ties with several former French colonies in West and Central Africa. Countries including Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, and Chad have recently distanced themselves from France, with some expelling French troops and strengthening ties with Russia.

Macron described the new approach as a “partnership of equals,” insisting France wanted to move away from the old “Françafrique” model that long defined Paris’s political and economic influence on the continent. Kenyan President William Ruto echoed that message, saying Africa no longer wants relationships based purely on aid and loans but instead seeks investment-driven partnerships focused on mutual benefit.

Among the major deals announced during the summit was a €700 million investment by French shipping giant CMA CGM to modernise facilities at Kenya’s port of Mombasa, one of East Africa’s busiest trade hubs. French energy and telecommunications giants, including TotalEnergies and Orange, also participated in discussions around digital technology, renewable energy, and AI expansion across Africa.

Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, was among the prominent business figures attending the summit, which focused heavily on attracting private investment rather than relying on traditional development aid.

The gathering also highlighted growing frustration among African leaders over the global financial system. Several heads of state called for reforms to international credit-rating systems, arguing that African economies are unfairly viewed as high-risk markets, making borrowing more expensive and limiting investment opportunities. Macron voiced support for reforms aimed at improving Africa’s access to global financing and said he would push the issue at the upcoming G7 summit in France next month.

The summit comes at a critical moment for France’s foreign policy in Africa. Over the past few years, anti-French sentiment has intensified in several African nations, fueled by military coups, security failures in the Sahel, and criticism of France’s colonial legacy. Macron has increasingly attempted to reposition France as a long-term economic partner rather than a dominant political force on the continent.

Ahead of the summit, Macron stirred debate after arguing that colonialism alone could no longer explain Africa’s current governance and economic challenges, saying African leaders also needed to take responsibility for post-independence failures. The remarks drew mixed reactions across the continent, where France’s colonial history remains a deeply sensitive issue.

Macron also pledged to continue returning African cultural artefacts looted during the colonial era, calling the restitution process “unstoppable” after France recently passed legislation easing the return of stolen artworks to African countries.

For Kenya, hosting the summit further strengthens Nairobi’s growing role as a diplomatic and economic hub in Africa. President Ruto used the event to push for fairer global financial systems and to position Kenya as a gateway for international investors seeking access to the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).