The African Union has announced October 7, 2026, as the official launch date for the African Credit Rating Agency (AfCRA) in Port Louis, Mauritius, where the agency is headquartered.
The launch is expected to mark a significant step in Africa’s efforts to strengthen its financial independence and develop an alternative perspective on the creditworthiness of African economies and businesses.
The AU announced the date on Wednesday through its official X account, describing AfCRA as an important milestone in the continent’s drive for greater financial sovereignty.
“For decades, skewed risk perceptions have forced African nations to pay an unfair ‘risk premium’ on global capital,” the AU said. It added that AfCRA would provide “context-driven credit opinions” on sovereign and corporate entities.
The agency is intended to offer an African perspective alongside major international rating agencies such as Fitch Ratings, Moody’s Ratings and S&P Global Ratings, which have faced criticism from some African governments over their assessment of sovereign risk.
Countries including Ghana and Zambia have argued that repeated credit downgrades can increase borrowing costs and compound debt pressures. The African Peer Review Mechanism has also criticised Fitch over its downgrade of the African Export-Import Bank, although Fitch maintains that its ratings are based on consistent and transparent global criteria.
AfCRA was initially scheduled to launch in September 2025 but was postponed. The agency is expected to operate independently of African governments and focus largely on ratings for local-currency debt instruments.
The AU said the agency would help strengthen Africa’s capacity to develop its own financial institutions and provide assessments that take greater account of the continent’s economic conditions, resilience and growth prospects.
The October launch in Mauritius comes as African governments continue efforts to influence how the continent’s creditworthiness is perceived and to address concerns about the cost of accessing international capital.
