Tinubu Backs October Launch of African Credit Rating Agency

President Bola Tinubu has welcomed the planned launch of the African Credit Rating Agency on October 7, 2026, calling it a step toward building African financial institutions that can assess the continent’s economies and risks.

“

AfCRA is another step towards that goal.

Tinubu said Africa was not seeking preferential treatment from credit-rating institutions. It wanted assessments that reflected economic fundamentals and the reforms its economies were carrying out. “Africa is not asking for favourable ratings. We are asking for fair ratings, grounded in our fundamentals and in the reforms our economies are actually carrying out,” he said.

The Nigerian president said he had argued for an African credit-rating agency in February 2026 in the Financial Times and repeated the call in May at the Africa CEO Forum in Kigali, Rwanda. He reacted to the African Union’s announcement of the planned launch in a message posted on his verified X account.

“

Africa is not asking for favourable ratings. We are asking for fair ratings, grounded in our fundamentals and in the reforms our economies are actually carrying out.

Tinubu also said the new agency would need to establish credibility with global capital markets through independent and rigorous assessments. “AfCRA must now earn the confidence of global capital. That confidence will rest on its independence and the rigour of its work,” he said. He added that he looked forward to the official launch.

“

AfCRA must now earn the confidence of global capital. That confidence will rest on its independence and the rigour of its work.