MWE Correspondent
The Southern African Development Community (SADC) has stepped up efforts to position Southern Africa as an integrated investment destination, using the AIM Congress 2026 in Dubai to attract international capital and strengthen regional financial market integration.
SADC, in partnership with the Committee of SADC Stock Exchanges (CoSSE), participated in the investment congress held at the Dubai World Trade Centre from September 7 to 9, bringing together governments, investors, financial institutions, development finance organisations and business leaders from across the world.
Leading the SADC delegation, Executive Secretary Elias M. Magosi said the region was moving beyond individual national markets towards a more connected investment ecosystem capable of mobilising capital for large-scale development.
“SADC is not merely a collection of national markets. SADC is emerging as an integrated regional investment destination,” Magosi said, stressing that the region’s future development would increasingly depend on its ability to mobilise domestic, regional and international capital at scale.
A key feature of SADC’s participation was the SADC-CoSSE Investment Forum, held under the theme “Mobilising Capital Markets for Regional Investment, Industrialisation and Sustainable Growth in SADC.”
The forum explored how stronger links between capital markets could help finance infrastructure, energy transition, tourism, climate resilience, manufacturing, mining and mineral beneficiation, pharmaceuticals, transport and logistics, as well as regional value chains.
The bloc also showcased the SADC Exchange Gateway, an operational platform being developed under the CoSSE Interconnectivity Project. The platform is designed to connect participating SADC stock exchanges through a Smart Order Router, allowing investors to access markets across the region while improving liquidity and cross-border investment opportunities.
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One of the most significant outcomes of the Dubai engagement was the signing of a Memorandum of Mutual Understanding and Cooperation on Tabadul Hub Capital Markets Interconnectivity between the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange and CoSSE on September 9.
The agreement is intended to create a framework for cooperation between SADC stock exchanges and the UAE capital market through the ADX-led Tabadul Hub, potentially opening new channels for investment between Southern Africa and the Middle East.
Magosi described the agreement as more than a formal partnership, saying it marked the beginning of a new phase of cooperation between Southern Africa and the Middle East in capital markets, investment facilitation and economic integration.
The development comes as SADC seeks to deepen financial integration under its Vision 2050 and the Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan (RISDP) 2020–2030.
The bloc’s approach is increasingly centred on making it easier for capital to move across borders and allowing investors to access opportunities across multiple SADC markets through interconnected financial systems.
Separate reporting from the AIM Congress also highlighted SADC’s efforts to build a more integrated capital market capable of mobilising domestic, regional and international financing for long-term development.
Beyond the investment forum, SADC and CoSSE held targeted meetings with sovereign wealth funds, commercial banks, development finance institutions, investment groups, chambers of commerce, stock exchanges and infrastructure developers.
The discussions focused on opportunities in infrastructure, energy, industrialisation, tourism, logistics, digital transformation and regional value chains.
The push comes as AIM Congress continues to serve as a major global platform connecting governments, investors and business leaders around investment opportunities, economic diversification and international partnerships. The 2026 edition was held under the theme “Reshaping Global Prosperity: Unlocking New Investment Pathways Towards a Sustainable and Inclusive Future.”
For SADC, the Dubai engagement represents a broader attempt to present Southern Africa not simply as a collection of individual economies, but as a connected regional market capable of attracting and deploying capital at greater scale.
The bloc says the partnerships and capital-market initiatives emerging from the congress could help increase investment flows, support industrialisation and strengthen economic integration across its 16 member states.
