Côte d’Ivoire is set to take over the presidency of the African Petroleum Producers Organization (APPO) in 2026, with its Minister of Mines, Petroleum and Energy, Mamadou Sangafowa-Coulibaly, vowing to make the creation of the African Energy Bank the cornerstone of his mandate.
Sangafowa-Coulibaly was formally appointed as APPO’s incoming president at the close of the organization’s 48th Council of Ministers meeting, held on November 4-5 in Brazzaville.
He will succeed Congo-Brazzaville’s Minister of Hydrocarbons, Bruno Jean Richard Itoua, at a time when Africa’s oil and gas producers face shrinking international financing for fossil fuel projects and growing pressure from the global energy transition.
In his acceptance remarks, the Ivorian minister stressed that APPO’s mission has never been more relevant, pointing to the retreat of traditional lenders from hydrocarbon investments. He argued that Africa must build its own financial mechanisms to ensure long-term energy security and development.
Central to his agenda is the establishment of the African Energy Bank, a flagship APPO project under development for six years.
The institution is expected to have a capital base of $5 billion, aimed at giving African states financial independence to fund energy infrastructure, from exploration and production to refining and local processing.
