AU TO LAUNCH AFRICAN CREDIT RATING AGENCY OCTOBER 7
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By; Sunmola Ganiyat
The African Union has announced that the African Credit Rating Agency will be officially launched on October 7, 2026, in Port Louis, Mauritius, where the agency is headquartered.
The launch is expected to mark a significant step in Africa’s efforts to strengthen financial sovereignty and provide an alternative perspective on the creditworthiness of African economies.
The AU announced the development on Wednesday via its official X account, describing the African Credit Rating Agency, AfCRA, as a major milestone in the continent’s drive for greater financial independence.
The Union said African countries had for decades faced what it described as skewed risk perceptions, which had contributed to higher borrowing costs and placed an additional risk premium on access to international capital.
According to the AU, AfCRA was established to provide context-driven credit assessments for sovereign and corporate entities across Africa.
The Union said the agency would offer an African perspective on the continent’s economies, taking into account local economic realities, resilience and growth prospects.
AfCRA is expected to serve as an alternative to major international credit rating agencies such as Fitch Ratings, Moody’s Ratings and S&P Global Ratings.
The initiative comes amid long-standing concerns among African governments and policymakers over the methodology and impact of international credit ratings on borrowing costs and investment flows.
Some African countries have argued that repeated credit downgrades have contributed to higher borrowing costs and compounded their debt challenges.
The African Peer Review Mechanism has also previously criticised rating assessments of African financial institutions, arguing that some evaluations did not adequately reflect the continent’s unique financial and economic environment.
However, international rating agencies have maintained that their assessments are based on consistent and transparent criteria applied globally.
AfCRA was initially expected to be launched in September 2025, but the rollout was delayed.
To safeguard its credibility and independence, the agency is not expected to be owned by African governments. It is also expected to focus significantly on ratings for local-currency debt instruments.
The African Union said the establishment of the agency would demonstrate the continent’s capacity to develop its own financial institutions, shape its economic narrative and exercise greater influence over its financial future.
The October 7 launch in Mauritius is therefore expected to attract significant attention as African countries seek to improve perceptions of their creditworthiness and strengthen their position in global capital markets.
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