As part of Egypt's continuing efforts to strengthen economic integration among African countries, Hassan Abdalla, Governor of the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE), took part in the official launch ceremony of the African Credit Rating Agency (AfCRA), held the day before yesterday, Wednesday 7 October 2026, in the Mauritian capital Port Louis. The ceremony was attended by a number of heads of state and government and leaders of African and international institutions concerned with financial and economic affairs.

Speaking on the occasion, Governor Hassan Abdalla said that establishing an African credit rating agency is a pivotal step towards strengthening African economies' ability to access capital markets and international investment. It will allow a more accurate assessment of the continent's economic, financial and institutional conditions that takes into account the specific features of its economies and the challenges they face, supporting efforts to achieve sustainable development and boost economic growth across the continent.

The Governor expressed his pride in taking part in the agency's official launch, which crowns years of African efforts and technical discussions aimed at creating a credit rating agency that reflects the conditions of African countries and supports their ability to attract investment and financing.

The CBE was among the first institutions to back the idea of an African credit rating agency, joining the effort in 2017 in cooperation with the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA). Its involvement stemmed from the importance of addressing a number of structural challenges affecting African countries' credit ratings, notably limited data availability and quality, information asymmetry between African economies and investors and international rating agencies, and the need to strengthen institutional and statistical capacity.

The CBE's hosting of the ninth meeting of the African Peer Review Mechanism committee on credit ratings, held in Cairo in October 2024 in cooperation with the Mechanism, the Economic Commission for Africa and the United Nations Development Programme, was also an important milestone on the road to the agency's creation. The meeting reached broad consensus on a model for a private-sector-led African credit rating agency that is sustainable and self-financing, reflecting Egypt's continuing role in supporting the development of Africa's financial architecture.