Johannesburg: The African Research and Innovation Hub (ARIH), recently launched by the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), has set an ambitious goal of unlocking up to $70 billion in annual economic gains for Africa. This initiative aims to drive innovation-led sustainable growth across the continent.
According to African Press Organization, ARIH is positioned to spearhead technological sovereignty, intra-African trade, and structural transformation by encouraging scientific research, innovation, and the commercialization of indigenous technologies. The hub seeks to accelerate intra-African trade by fostering effective partnerships among academia, industry, and policymakers, thus promoting scalable innovations.
The hub's structure is designed to address Africa's low investment in research and development (R&D) and its underperformance in research output. By enhancing innovation commercialization and strengthening collaborations between academia, industry, and policymakers, ARIH aims to double Africa's R&D expenditure, potentially unlocking significant economic benefits.
ARIH envisions itself as a transformative platform, aiming to convert intellectual capital into industrial competitiveness and trade-driven growth. The hub believes that by increasing Africa's R&D expenditure by one percent of GDP, it could potentially unlock up to $70 billion annually. ARIH aspires to be a crucial link connecting academia, industry, policymakers, and investors to expedite Africa's journey towards inclusive and sustainable growth.
During the IATF2025 event, ARIH activities included awarding presentations to 12 innovative projects from Africa and the Caribbean, highlighting their potential to address pressing challenges. These projects emerged from over 200 applications submitted by researchers, students, educators, and scientists for a competition initiated by Afreximbank. The awards were presented by Mrs. Kanayo Awani, Afreximbank's Executive Vice President for Intra-African Trade and Export Development.
Dr. Anthony Coleman, Director for Development Research at Afreximbank, commended the winners and encouraged them to expand their innovative scopes to effectively address Africa's technology gaps and development challenges. He reiterated Afreximbank's commitment to sustaining ARIH as a long-term avenue for growth within Africa's innovation ecosystem.
The launch event saw participation from notable figures such as Dr. Kamel Bidari, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research of Algeria, and other distinguished ministers from Algeria, Lesotho, and the Central African Republic.
IATF2025, held from September 4 to 10, was attended by over 112,000 visitors from 132 countries and concluded with $48.3 billion in trade and investment deals signed over the seven-day exposition. The event also featured 2,148 exhibitors, marking a significant success for the continental trade fair.
