The African Diplomatic Corps and Development Reimagined convened the first public Africa–UK High Commissioners and Ambassadors Conference on 8 September 2026 at Church House, Westminster, under the theme “Delivering Agenda 2063 Through Strategic Africa–UK Partnerships”. Approximately 25 high commissions and embassies attended, with around 65 organisations joining in person and online, to examine how Africa–UK partnerships can support African priorities.

Her Excellency Ambassador Sara Amani of Côte d’Ivoire gave the welcome remarks, followed by opening remarks from HE Colonel (Rtd) Christian M Katsande, Dean of the African Diplomatic Corps, and Kirsty McNeill MP, the UK Minister of State for International Development. The hosts framed the day around Agenda 2063, the UK’s 2027 G20 presidency and the UK’s stated shift from donor to investor and from grants to expertise.

Financing Systems That Deliver: Correcting the Pricing of African Risk. Moderated by HE Dr Rajeshwar Jeetah, High Commissioner of Mauritius to the United Kingdom, with panellists Mr Babajide Sodipo, Acting Executive Secretary, Alliance of African Multilateral Financial Institutions; Dr Daouda Sembene, Chief Executive Officer, AfriCatalyst; and Prof Gibril Faal OBE, Director, GK Partners, and Visiting Professor in Practice, Firoz Lalji Institute for Africa, London School of Economics, this session highlighted the African Credit Rating Agency, launching in Mauritius on 7 October, and urged a short, sharply worded set of African asks for the UK’s G20 presidency.

Water and Sanitation: Investing in Growth and Resilience. Moderated by HE Dr Fatou Bensouda, High Commissioner of The Gambia to the United Kingdom, with panellists HE Dr Ibrahim Assane Mayaki, African Union Special Envoy for Food Systems, and Mr Tim Wainwright, Chief Executive Officer, WaterAid UK, the session framed WASH as an economic, resilience and dignity issue, returning around US$4 for every US$1 invested, and called for water, food and energy to be treated as a single policy nexus.

Education, Skills and the Future Workforce: Building Around African Institutions. Moderated by HE Ms Macenje Mazoka, High Commissioner of Zambia to the United Kingdom, with panellists Mr Joel Popoola, Managing Partner, Anchora Advisory, and Chair, Institute of Directors Africa Group; and Dr Lesley Nelson-Addy, Consultant, Researcher and Educator, the session argued that genuine partnership requires reciprocity, including recognition of African qualifications and co-designed curricula, not simply expanded access to UK study.

Trade, Investment and Industrialisation: Engaging Africa as One Market. Moderated by Mrs Amel Elsayed, Deputy Ambassador of Sudan to the United Kingdom, with panellists Ms Allen Sophia Asiimwe, Deputy Chief Executive Officer, TradeMark Africa, and Ms Agnes Gitau, Managing Partner, GBS Africa, the session favoured engagement through the AfCFTA over bilateral Economic Partnership Agreements, and urged the UK to treat trade, debt and tax justice as linked issues.

Looking ahead, participants asked the UK to use its G20 presidency to back IMF quota and World Bank shareholding reform, champion the rechannelling of Special Drawing Rights through multilateral development banks and recognise the African Credit Rating Agency once launched, and to engage Africa as a continental bloc on trade and investment, backed by UK Export Finance and British International Investment capital.

The Minister described partnership as “a choice of partners, not a partner of choice”, placing UK strengths in financial, professional and legal services, standards-setting and education at the centre of that offer. With UK development assistance not expected to increase, the practical offer is soft power, technical partnership and market-shaping rather than new grant money.

Closing remarks from Ms Hannah Wanjie Ryder, Chief Executive Officer of Development Reimagined, described the conference as a first step, with African High Commissioners and Ambassadors in London as the “bridge” for turning the day’s ideas into concrete partnerships ahead of the next Africa Day.

Watch the full conference here.

Find the full summary report here.