Agriculture has been identified as a central pillar in Absa Group’s long-term growth strategy across Africa, with leadership emphasizing its role in driving economic transformation, food security and industrial development. Group CEO Kenny Fihla said the sector remains one of the bank’s most important lending areas and a key lever for scaling productivity across its African markets.
Fihla highlighted that the bank already plays a dominant role in agricultural financing in South Africa, where it accounts for about 40% of commercial lending to the sector. He noted that this expertise provides a strong foundation that could be extended more broadly across the continent, although he acknowledged that Absa has not yet fully leveraged its regional footprint to replicate this success in other markets.
He stressed that agriculture can be commercially sustainable when structured correctly, arguing that targeted financing models and well-selected investment opportunities can generate long-term returns despite the sector’s inherent risks. According to him, the bank is working to better integrate its operations across countries in order to scale successful agricultural financing models beyond South Africa.
The comments come as African economies face a broader financing gap, with significant capital required for infrastructure, energy and industrial development. Fihla estimated that trillions of dollars will be needed across the continent, but argued that sufficient capital already exists within Africa if properly mobilised through structured investment and banking systems.
He added that banks such as Absa Group increasingly need to act as intermediaries between investors and viable projects, while also leveraging domestic deposits to support lending growth. In his view, stronger coordination between governments, financial institutions and private capital will be essential to unlocking agriculture’s full potential as a driver of Africa’s economic transformation.
