The Corporate Council on Africa

What The Corporate Council on Africa does

The Corporate Council on Africa (CCA), founded in 1993 and headquartered in Washington, D.C., is a nonprofit U.S. business association whose sole mandate is promoting trade and investment between the United States and African nations. It is not a technology company but rather a convening and membership-organization platform whose flagship product is the annual U.S.-Africa Business Summit, supplemented by six sector working groups (Agribusiness, Energy Transition/Climate Change, Finance, Health, ICT/Cybersecurity, and Trade & Investment), the U.S.-Africa Health Security and Resilience Initiative (HSRI) with an embedded Regulatory Harmonization Network supporting the African Medicines Agency, the Africa eJournal publication, and an unpaid internship program. CCA monetizes through annual corporate membership dues (fees not publicly disclosed) and summit/event sponsorships; revenue stream is classified as recurring subscription-like membership plus episodic event sponsorship income. The organization is governed by a board chaired by John Olajide and led by President and CEO Florizelle B. Liser.

CCA serves three primary customer segments: U.S. multinational and SME members seeking African market access, African governments and heads of state seeking U.S. investment, and African companies seeking U.S. counterparties. The 2025 Summit in Luanda, Angola illustrates scale — nearly 2,800 participants from 85 countries, 12 Heads of State, 41 Ministers, and over $4 billion in reported deals and commitments across energy, infrastructure, ICT, healthcare, and agribusiness. Membership spans energy majors (Chevron, Shell), financial institutions (Standard Bank), and logistics/digital firms (Cybastion, Amer-Con, Hydro-Link). CCA positions itself as the only U.S. business association focused exclusively on U.S.-Africa commerce, and leverages formal partnerships with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, U.S. Department of Commerce, Prosper Africa, the African Union, and U.S. financing agencies (DFC, EXIM, USTDA) to anchor its convening role. The 2026 Summit is scheduled for Mauritius (December 6-9, 2026), rescheduled from July 2026 due to Ebola-related health concerns.

Name

The Corporate Council on Africa

Legal name

Corporate Council on Africa

Website

https://corporatecouncilonafrica.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1993

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Corporate Council on Africa is a 1993-founded, Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit U.S. business association that promotes trade and investment between the United States and Africa through its annual U.S.-Africa Business Summit, six sector working groups, and the Health Security and Resilience Initiative.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Trade Association Services

NAICS

Business Associations (813910), Business Associations (81391)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Technical Committees, Working Groups & Expert Panels (BPADANAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Association & Society Conference Management (Nonprofit, Professional Bodies) (THAHACAA)

Keywords

• Trade facilitation services
• Business association membership
• U.S.-Africa investment promotion
• Bilateral business summits
• Corporate networking events

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: CCA generates revenue through annual membership fees from U.S. and African companies seeking to engage in cross-continental business. Membership provides access to summits, roundtables, working groups, and direct engagement with government officials and heads of state.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Corporate Council on Africa is a nonprofit, membership-based business association that promotes and facilitates trade and investment between the United States and African nations. Its core offerings include the annual U.S.-Africa Business Summit, sector-specific working groups, bilateral roundtables with heads of state, and knowledge products such as the Africa eJournal, delivered to U.S. and African corporate members and government stakeholders.

Product overview

The Corporate Council on Africa operates as a membership-based business association offering a portfolio of convening, networking, and knowledge-sharing products rather than a traditional technology platform. The core product is the annual U.S.-Africa Business Summit, supplemented by sector-focused working groups (Agribusiness, Energy Transition/Climate Change, Finance, Health, ICT/Cybersecurity, and Trade and Investment), the U.S.-Africa Health Security and Resilience Initiative (HSRI) with its Regulatory Harmonization Network, and the Africa eJournal publication. The organization also provides an internship program and membership services for U.S. companies engaged with Africa.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• U.S.-Africa Business Summit: CCA's premier annual conference bringing together public and private sector leaders to strengthen commercial ties between the United States and Africa.
• U.S.-Africa Health Security and Resilience Initiative (HSRI)
• Africa eJournal

Products and services

• U.S.-Africa Business Summit CCA's flagship annual conference bringing together African Heads of State, senior U.S. and African government officials, CEOs, and senior executives to explore investment, trade, and commercial opportunities across agribusiness, energy, health, infrastructure, ICT, and finance.
• U.S.-Africa Health Security and Resilience Initiative (HSRI) An initiative that convenes public and private sector collaboration to advance health security across Africa, supporting regulatory convergence, local production, and improved healthcare access.
• U.S.-Africa Regulatory Harmonization Network A private-sector-driven platform under HSRI advancing regulatory convergence, implementation, and impact across Africa's health product value chains and supporting the operationalization of the African Medicines Agency.
• Africa eJournal A digital publication providing in-depth analyses and expert perspectives on the evolving African business landscape, including the U.S.-Africa Business Monthly Roundup with Florie Liser.
• Sector Working Groups Organized programs covering Agribusiness, Energy Transition/Climate Change, Finance, Health, ICT/Cybersecurity, and Trade and Investment that drive member engagement and growth initiatives across these key sectors.
• Corporate Membership Program An annual corporate membership program providing U.S. and African companies with access to CCA's U.S.-Africa Business Summit, sector working groups, bilateral roundtables, and direct engagement with African and U.S. government officials.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over $4 billion in deals and commitments generated at 2025 Summit
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.

• Government of MauritiusflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 30 June 2026Co-host of the 2026 U.S.-Africa Business Summit scheduled for December 6-9, 2026 in Mauritius. The partnership involves hosting Africa's premier business and investment gathering at a moment of extraordinary momentum in U.S.-Africa commercial engagement.
• Government of AngolaflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-hosted the 17th U.S.-Africa Business Summit in Luanda, Angola on June 22-25, 2025. The partnership marked Angola's 50th anniversary of independence and its Chairmanship of the African Union.
• Government of BotswanacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost of the 15th U.S.-Africa Business Summit in June 2023 in Gaborone, Botswana.
• U.S. Chamber of CommercecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerCo-host of the AGOA Private Sector Forum and partner in U.S.-Africa Business Forum events.
• U.S. Department of CommercecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerCo-host of the 2022 U.S.-Africa Business Forum alongside CCA and U.S. Chamber of Commerce, in partnership with Prosper Africa initiative.
• Prosper Africa InitiativecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to bolster U.S.-Africa trade and investment through coordinated U.S. government engagement.
• African Union (AU)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEngagement with African Union on AGOA policy, regulatory harmonization, and continental trade initiatives through the African Medicines Agency and AfCFTA.
• African Union CommissioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAU Commissioner Muchanga participated in AGOA Private Sector Forum with high-level U.S. government officials.
• South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFeatured in CCA's U.S.-Africa Health Security and Resilience Initiative (HSRI) Regulatory Harmonization Series, with CEO Dr. Boitumelo Semete-Makokotlela briefing on AMA technical committees and AU Model Law implementation.

Scale indicators13 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Africa-America Institute: Nonprofit organization founded in 1953 dedicated to strengthening educational, professional, and business ties between Africa and the United States. Highly comparable to CCA in mission (U.S.-Africa engagement), nonprofit membership-driven model, programming across multiple sectors, and convening of leaders on both sides of the Atlantic.
• Business Council for International Understanding (BCIU): U.S.-based business association that builds commercial bridges between U.S. companies and foreign markets through high-level convenings, delegations, and working groups. Directly comparable to CCA in model: membership dues, executive-led summits, and country/region-specific programs that link U.S. firms to government and private-sector counterparts abroad.
• Africa Business Roundtable: Continental business association that mobilizes African private-sector engagement with governments and investors. Comparable to CCA in convening African Heads of State and business leaders around investment promotion, sectoral working groups, and policy advocacy, though headquartered in Africa rather than in the U.S.

Broad incumbents

• U.S. Chamber of Commerce (Africa programs): Largest U.S. business federation with a global footprint; co-hosts the U.S.-Africa Business Forum with CCA and the U.S. Department of Commerce. Comparable because it operates the same convening and policy-advocacy model CCA uses for U.S.-Africa, but at much broader scale across all regions and sectors.

Emerging players

• Atlantic Council Africa Center: Think-tank and convening platform producing policy research and high-level events focused on U.S.-Africa commercial and security engagement. Comparable to CCA in audience (U.S. policymakers, executives, African heads of state) and convening function, but operates more as a research/policy body than a membership-driven trade association.
• Tony Elumelu Foundation: Africa-focused philanthropic and entrepreneurship platform that convenes African entrepreneurs, investors, and policymakers through the annual TEF Forum. Comparable to CCA in convening and Africa-focused programming, but its center of gravity is entrepreneurship and SME development rather than large-corporate U.S.-Africa dealmaking.

Regional players

• American Chamber of Commerce in South Africa (AmCham South Africa) and other African AmChams: Country-level U.S. business chambers that promote bilateral trade and investment between the United States and specific African markets (South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, etc.). Comparable to CCA's mission at the regional level, but focused on single-country engagement rather than pan-African convening.

Others

• Brookings Africa Growth Initiative: Policy program within Brookings producing research and convening on U.S.-Africa investment, trade, and economic strategy. Comparable audience and topic overlap with CCA's working groups and Africa eJournal, but operates as a think tank rather than a membership association.
• Prosper Africa Initiative: U.S. government initiative coordinating federal agencies (DFC, EXIM, USTDA, Commerce) to catalyze two-way U.S.-Africa trade and investment. Functions as a partner rather than competitor to CCA, but is thematically overlapping and is increasingly the principal U.S. government counterpart for cross-border dealmaking, which can substitute for some of CCA's convening role.
• African Development Bank (AfDB) Private Sector Window: Multilateral development bank financing infrastructure and private-sector investment across Africa. Comparable to CCA in mobilizing capital into African markets and convening public-private deal flow, but operates as a financing institution rather than a membership association; interacts with CCA member companies and co-participates in summit deal pipelines.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/corporate-council-on-africa
• Xx.com/CorpCnclAfrica
• Facebookfacebook.com/CorporateCouncilonAfrica

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about The Corporate Council on Africa