The Municipal CFO Initiative is a programme aimed at building the capacity of municipal CFOs across Africa, and enabling cities to tap financial markets more effectively in order to fund local infrastructure and development projects, said development finance institution the African Development Bank (AfDB), which launched the programme in partnership with metropolitan government umbrella organisation United Cities and Local Governments.

“There is a pressing need for city infrastructure to grow and expand to meet the demands of Africa’s rapidly urbanising cities. Such capacity-building programmes play a catalytic role in the long-term development of cities and turning municipalities into robust discussion partners for a broad range of funders,” said AfDB Infrastructure, Cities and Urban Development Department chief urban development officer Alice Nabalamba.

The programme will start in September and ten municipalities will participate. Financial officers that take part will learn finance, accounting and debt and risk management skills to improve the creditworthiness of their cities.

Participants will also have the opportunity to undertake site visits to African bourses, including the JSE and Abidjan Stock Exchange.

"A number of municipalities are almost ready to access financial markets, which will dramatically improve their capacity in financing projects. However, they don’t have a deep, comprehensive understanding of how to start,” said United Cities and Local Governments Africa programmes director Dr François Paul Yatta.

"Municipalities have to inspire confidence, build a positive and engaging narrative to capture the attention of both public and private finance," said cities network organisation C40 MD Hastings Chikoko.

Further, the AfDB also unveiled the first component of its Sustainable Urban Development action plan, which is a blueprint for its interventions to reinforce subnational credit and municipal finance.