African Union to launch continental credit rating agency on October 7

The African Union plans to unveil its own credit rating agency in Mauritius on Oct. 7, 2026, presenting the move as an assertion of Africa’s financial independence.

The African Credit Rating Agency, headquartered in Port Louis, is intended to provide an alternative to Fitch Ratings, Moody’s Ratings and S&P Global Ratings. The AU says global assessments have often failed to reflect African economies’ realities, resilience and growth potential.

“

For decades, skewed risk perceptions have forced African nations to pay an unfair ‘risk premium’ on global capital.

“For decades, skewed risk perceptions have forced African nations to pay an unfair ‘risk premium’ on global capital,” the AU said. It described AfCRA as a way to provide “context-driven credit opinions” for sovereign and corporate entities.

“

The African Credit Rating Agency (AfCRA), headquartered in Mauritius, is created to rewrite that narrative with context-driven credit opinions for sovereign and corporate entities.

African governments and policymakers have long criticised the way international agencies assess and price sovereign credit risk. Ghana and Zambia have argued that repeated downgrades increased their borrowing costs and deepened debt pressures. The African Peer Review Mechanism also criticised Fitch over its downgrade of the African Export-Import Bank, while Fitch defended its ratings as based on consistent and transparent global criteria.

AfCRA was initially scheduled to launch in September 2025 but was delayed. The AU said the agency would not be owned by African governments, a measure intended to protect its credibility and independence. It is expected to concentrate primarily on local-currency debt instruments and give African countries greater influence over how their financial prospects are assessed.

“

AfCRA is our response. A bold assertion of African agency, financial sovereignty and institutional confidence.