Tinubu backs Africa’s planned credit ratings agency as debate grows over borrowing costs

Tinubu’s endorsement comes ahead of October launch in Mauritius

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu has publicly backed the launch of the African Credit Rating Agency, or AfCRA, a project being developed under the African Union and scheduled to open on 7 October in Port Louis, Mauritius. In a statement on his official X account, Tinubu said the idea reflects a broader effort to build African financial institutions that understand the continent’s economies, reforms and risk profiles. Premium Times reported that he linked the initiative to arguments he had already made earlier this year, including a February article in the Financial Times and remarks at the Africa CEO Forum in Kigali in May. ([premiumtimesng.com](https://www.premiumtimesng.com/business/business-news/907325-tinubu-speaks-on-africas-new-credit-rating-agency.html?utm_source=openai))

He framed the new agency not as a request for easier treatment, but as a call for assessments that are more closely tied to economic fundamentals. That distinction matters because African leaders have long argued that the problem is not that markets should ignore risk, but that risk should be measured more accurately and consistently. Tinubu said AfCRA would need to earn trust through independence and rigorous analysis if it wants credibility with investors. ([premiumtimesng.com](https://www.premiumtimesng.com/business/business-news/907325-tinubu-speaks-on-africas-new-credit-rating-agency.html?utm_source=openai))

Why African leaders say the current system is too costly

The debate over credit ratings is not new, but it has become more urgent as many African governments face rising debt-servicing burdens and persistent pressure to finance infrastructure, energy and climate adaptation. Reuters has reported in recent coverage that poor sovereign ratings can make it harder for African states and projects to attract affordable capital, especially when global financial rules treat national risk as a ceiling for private borrowers. In that reporting, experts and policy figures said current systems can overstate danger and push up the cost of finance even when project fundamentals are stronger than market assumptions suggest. ([apnews.com](https://apnews.com/article/f8382124c2b281b0bd24e5f8c91b4541?utm_source=openai))

AfCRA is being positioned as part of a broader push to challenge what policymakers often call the Africa premium — the extra cost African borrowers may pay because investors view the continent through a lens of elevated risk. Premium Times said Tinubu repeated the argument that Africa should receive fairer ratings, not preferential treatment. The African Union has said the new body will work alongside global firms rather than replace them, which suggests the goal is to add an Africa-based benchmark, not to create a closed system. ([premiumtimesng.com](https://www.premiumtimesng.com/business/business-news/907325-tinubu-speaks-on-africas-new-credit-rating-agency.html?utm_source=openai))

The broader policy battle over who defines risk in Africa

The issue is bigger than one agency. Ratings affect whether governments can issue bonds, how much interest they pay and whether private investors are willing to commit capital to projects. When ratings are too pessimistic, borrowing becomes more expensive; when they are too optimistic, investors can be misled. That is why the credibility of AfCRA will depend less on rhetoric than on methodology, transparency and independence. Tinubu’s own comments pointed in that direction: if the agency is seen as politically directed, it will struggle to win the confidence of global markets. ([premiumtimesng.com](https://www.premiumtimesng.com/business/business-news/907325-tinubu-speaks-on-africas-new-credit-rating-agency.html?utm_source=openai))

The Nigerian president also tied the initiative to Nigeria’s own economic reforms, saying improved data, fiscal transparency and policy changes had helped support recent rating upgrades. Premium Times quoted him as arguing that local reforms are not always properly captured by international assessments. That is an important claim, but it is also one that will likely be tested over time. If AfCRA is to matter, it will need to show that it can assess defaults, debt sustainability and macroeconomic risk with the same discipline expected of the established global rating companies. ([premiumtimesng.com](https://www.premiumtimesng.com/business/business-news/907325-tinubu-speaks-on-africas-new-credit-rating-agency.html?utm_source=openai))

What AfCRA could mean for Kenya and the wider continent

For Kenya and other African borrowers, the timing is significant. Governments across the continent continue to juggle debt restructuring, foreign-exchange pressure and weak fiscal space, while still needing to spend on roads, power, digital infrastructure and social services. A locally grounded ratings alternative could, in theory, give policymakers another reference point when negotiating with lenders and investors. But it is unlikely to move markets on reputation alone. Investors will compare it against existing agencies, external data and the judgment of multilateral institutions before deciding how much weight to give it. ([apnews.com](https://apnews.com/article/f8382124c2b281b0bd24e5f8c91b4541?utm_source=openai))

There is also a political dimension. African leaders have often accused global finance of treating the continent as a single risk category, even though countries differ widely in governance, debt structure, export earnings and reform momentum. Tinubu’s endorsement suggests Nigeria wants to be seen at the forefront of efforts to reshape that conversation. Yet the same challenge that has faced many African institutions will apply here too: if the new agency is to alter capital flows, it will need a track record that convinces skeptics in London, New York, Johannesburg and Nairobi alike. ([premiumtimesng.com](https://www.premiumtimesng.com/business/business-news/907325-tinubu-speaks-on-africas-new-credit-rating-agency.html?utm_source=openai))

A test of independence as much as ambition

The launch in Mauritius will therefore be only the beginning. AfCRA’s real test will be whether it can produce ratings that are methodologically sound, commercially useful and politically insulated. That will require governance rules, disclosure standards and analytical depth strong enough to stand beside the big three global agencies that currently dominate sovereign and corporate ratings. If it succeeds, it could become a useful corrective to the way African debt is priced. If it fails, it may end up reinforcing the very skepticism it was meant to address. ([premiumtimesng.com](https://www.premiumtimesng.com/business/business-news/907325-tinubu-speaks-on-africas-new-credit-rating-agency.html?utm_source=openai))

Bottom line

Tinubu’s support for AfCRA taps into a wider African push for financial self-definition. The case for reform is real, but so is the burden of proof. The continent wants fairer ratings; the new agency will have to show, in practice, that fairness and rigour can coexist. ([premiumtimesng.com](https://www.premiumtimesng.com/business/business-news/907325-tinubu-speaks-on-africas-new-credit-rating-agency.html?utm_source=openai))

Sources:

• Premium Times Nigeria
• Reuters
• Associated Press