Reimagining Financial Leadership for Africa's Future

South Africa’s financial sector, one of the most established on the continent, has been forced to adapt to fast-paced technological shifts. Built historically around servicing mining and trade, it now needs to incorporate fintech and digital innovation at scale, explained Bongi Kunene, Managing Director of the Banking Association South Africa. The former Executive Director at the World Bank Group in Washington, DC has not only held leading positions in the banking sector but has also served in the South African government in various roles. Having had these experiences across sectors, she believes that today’s financial landscape is shaped by both government and the private sector. For Bongi, the public sector operates on longer timelines and broad mandates, whereas banking requires rapid decision making and immediate problem solving.

“When you are in a private capacity or in a banking environment, your timeframes are very short. In government, the runway can be as long as five years,” she noted.

This dual perspective, she emphasized, is essential for leaders navigating systems that need to remain accountable while responding quickly to shifting economic realities. Bongi also highlighted how banks are transforming their portfolios and disclosures to align with sustainability standards and investor expectations. This is because climate finance, she stressed, is no longer optional and is now central to financial governance.

The integration of sustainability into financial systems is unfolding across the continent. Rukaiya El-Rufai, Special Advisor to the President of Nigeria on the National Economic Council and Climate Change, explained that Nigeria is one of the continent’s leaders in adopting sustainable banking principles, including the use of green bonds, a financial instrument designed to fund environmentally beneficial projects. Nigeria also plans to adopt the IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards by 2028, which affects how companies report sustainability-related financial disclosures and climate-related risks and opportunities. For Rukaiya, both sustainable finance and a fair energy transition is inseparable from Nigeria’s broader socioeconomic challenges. She stated:

“A just energy transition is one that delivers a greener and more inclusive future for Nigeria. It is one [that] in the short-, medium-, and long-term, guarantees economic stability, job security, food security, and delivers affordable energy access for Nigeria”.

With Nigeria set to become the world’s third most populated country by 2050, it is essential to find solutions for climate change, as this is largely driving food insecurity and poverty. This is only possible, she explained, by enabling participation in new green industries with cooperation between the public and private sector, while having a shared value creation at the center of cooperation. Both Bongi Kunene and Kwame Oppong, Head of FinTech and Innovation at the Bank of Ghana, emphasized that trust must be at the core of collaboration across sectors and stakeholders.

“We have to find ways of building trust. There is no doubt that there is a trust deficit, and we cannot continue unless we actually intervene in a positive way”, stated Kwame.

Especially in times of economic uncertainty, argued Bongi, both the government and the banking sector need to position themselves as a “mediator, trusted partner, and trusted advisor.”

Fintech’s growth, built on networks of innovators, institutions, technologies, and regulatory frameworks that enable digital financial services, is reshaping financial access and opening new avenues for entrepreneurship across the African continent. In the case of Ghana, a young population of digitally native and globally connected innovators has played a major role in shaping the country’s fintech landscape. Deliberate policy actions, such as the early regulation of mobile money in the late 2000s, allowed innovators and payment service providers to grow rapidly. Today, Ghana’s interoperability system links banks, mobile money services, and fintechs, lowering costs and enabling millions of previously excluded people to access financial services.

This innovation is also central to Africa’s broader regional integration agenda. Despite strong cultural interconnectedness across Africa, seen in music, creative industries, and youth networks, payment systems remain fragmented, claimed Kwame. For the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) to succeed, he believes countries need to build payment systems that operate smoothly across the entire continent. African countries need to strengthen policy coordination and establish a coherent regulatory framework: “It is important that both central banks and the broader national government, along with private-sector providers, put together a framework that provides clarity on how we move forward,” stated Kwame.

Bongi underscored how Africa’s financial challenges and opportunities intersect with global geopolitics. “We live in a multipolar world,” she said, noting that smaller economies like South Africa often need to readjust with each shift. Financing growth, promoting climate goals, and protecting national interests all require balancing domestic needs with external pressures. Debt sustainability, she emphasized, remains one of the most pressing issues faced by many African economies. Yet tools such as AfCFTA could transform the continent’s economic landscape if financial institutions capitalize on regional opportunities and ensure trade partnerships remain equitable.

Calling upon the young population across Africa has been mentioned as both an opportunity and challenge across many Salzburg Global sessions under the “Centering Africa” annual spotlight. Rukaiya noted that capitalizing on Nigeria’s rapidly growing population requires investment in education, nutrition, energy access, and innovation. “We don’t want to be left behind,” she stressed, calling for coordinated action and blended financing to support resilient development.

The perspectives of these Fellows make it clear that Africa’s financial transformation depends on coordinated leadership which is rooted in trust and responsive to both global pressures and local realities. Whether exploring sustainable finance, strengthening public-private collaboration, or advancing just energy transitions, African countries are connecting innovation and development to build a resilient and self-determined future for the continent.

The insights in this article were shared during three Salzburg Global Finance and Governance sessions held in 2025. These include the Public Sector Strategy Network's “Annual Foresight Retreat: Public Strategy in Transition"; the Salzburg Global Finance Forum on “Fragmentation & Realignment in the Global Financial System”; and the “Policy Dialogue on Just Energy Transitions 2.0: Pathways to Prosperity Post Fossil Fuels”.