Three Gulf sovereign funds have signed a deal in Rabat to promote investment in Africa, alongside nine from within the continent.

The deal was signed by the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and holding firm ADQ in addition to the Kuwait Investment Authority on the sidelines of the first meeting of the Africa Sovereign Investors Forum (ASIF), on Monday.

ASIF is a platform bringing together sovereign funds of Angola, Djibouti, Egypt, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Morocco, Nigeria and Rwanda.

The organisers gave no details on how exactly the Gulf funds will support their African counterparts. But ASIF “will enable us to explore new opportunities with potential partners in Africa for ADQ and its portfolio companies”, said ADQ CEO Mohamed Hassan Alsuwaidi.

Heads of African sovereign funds taking part at the event said the focus for ASIF will be on mobilising capital and equity, promoting green projects and investing in logistics to improve interconnectivity within the continent.

The African sovereign funds that signed the deal include Morocco’s Ithmar Capital, Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority, Ghana Infrastructure Investment Fund, Gabon’s Fonds Gabonais d’Investissements Stratégiques (FGIS), Rwanda’s Agaciro Development Fund, Angola’s Fundo Soberano, the Sovereign Fund of Egypt, Senegal’s FONSIS and Djibouti’s Sovereign Fund.

The deal has been signed during vulnerable economic times for many countries, especially in states already struggling due to climate change, the coronavirus pandemic, and now the effects of war in Ukraine.

In May, the United Nations said Africa is facing an “unprecedented” crisis caused by Russia’s four-month invasion of Ukraine that has led to soaring food and fuel prices.