Ruto calls for a credit rating agency for Africa to end bias in global financial assessments
President Ruto said the proposed agency would complement international credit rating agencies by filling data and analytical gaps.
President William Ruto has called for the creation of an African Credit Rating Agency (AfCRA) to address the bias in global financial assessments of Africa.
Speaking during a presidential breakfast on the sidelines of the 38th Ordinary Assembly of the African Union in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Ruto explained that Africa's economic potential is held back by a financial system that "misrepresents, distorts, and understates our reality".
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"The time has come to rewrite our history, reclaim our narrative, and charge the African renaissance forward," Ruto said on Friday as he criticised global credit rating agencies.
"Global credit rating agencies have not only dealt us a bad hand, they have also deliberately failed Africa," he said.
Highlighting the heavy cost of these flawed assessments, the Kenyan president noted that prejudiced evaluations have led to exaggerated risks and high borrowing costs for African nations.
Africa's economic strengths
"Africa will no longer accept to be misjudged by scales that overlook our reality," Ruto asserted, urging a change that reflects the continent's true economic strengths.
President Ruto said the proposed agency would complement international credit rating agencies by filling data and analytical gaps.
"In other words, it will do the heavy lifting that international rating agencies may lack the time, inclination, or capacity to undertake," Ruto said.
"I see the role of the Africa Credit Rating Agency as one of demystifying and democratising sovereign credit assessments. It must develop a methodology that is objective, transparent, and replicable – rooted in the rigour of science rather than the exclusivity of tradecraft," he said.
President Ruto also pointed to research, indicating that a one-level improvement in Africa's average credit rating could unlock $15.5 billion (Sh2 trillion) in additional funding, a sum that would outstrip official development assistance by 12 per cent and meet 80 per cent of the continent's infrastructure needs.
He commended the United Nations Development Programme and AfriCatalyst for their efforts in supporting African nations to strengthen their creditworthiness, emphasising the need for real partnerships to drive change.
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