Germany Africa Business Forum

What Germany Africa Business Forum does

Germany Africa Business Forum (GABF), legally constituted as Germany Africa Business Forum e.V., is a private non-profit think tank founded in 2017 and headquartered in Berlin, with a regional office in Johannesburg (Sandton). Its stated mission is to strengthen investment ties between Germany and Africa by bridging what it characterizes as a persistent information and relationship gap between German investors and African business and political leaders. GABF operates a 'Private for Privates' model, anchoring activity in the private sector rather than government aid channels, and positions Africa's projected status as the world's fastest-growing region through 2040 as the macro thesis for its work.

GABF's product surface is a portfolio of convening initiatives rather than a software platform. Core offerings include the GABF Berlin Forum and Munich Forum (inaugural events in 2017), the German Pavilion at African Energy Week (Cape Town, 2021), country-specific trade missions (notably a three-day Mozambique Gas & Power mission targeting LNG and gas in 2021), a South Sudan Oil & Power engagement in 2021, a German delegation to the Namibian Green Hydrogen Investment Forum in Paris in 2022, and a recurring webinar series on German-African cooperation. In 2021 GABF launched a multi-million Euro funding commitment, in collaboration with private energy industry partners, to invest in German energy startups with African exposure, described as the first such intra-regional initiative. Distribution is anchored by the dual Berlin/Johannesburg footprint, partnerships with Africa Oil & Power, the African Energy Chamber, Afreximbank, Enertrag, and government counterparts in Mozambique, Namibia, and South Sudan, plus digital channels including the germanyafrica.com website and Twitter/X.

The business model relies on membership fees, partnership contributions, and event participation fees from German and African companies seeking investment relationships, with no publicly disclosed pricing or revenue figures. GABF is led by a small core team of approximately 2-5 staff, including Executive Chair and co-founder Sebastian Wagner and Community Manager Jessica Stang. There is no parent company, external ownership, or disclosed funding round; the organization's funding activity to date has been channeled outward into portfolio energy startups rather than into GABF's own capitalization.

Name

Germany Africa Business Forum

Legal name

Germany Africa Business Forum e.V.

Website

https://germanyafrica.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Germany Africa Business Forum (GABF) is a Berlin-based non-profit think tank, founded in 2017, that runs trade missions, forums, and webinars to connect German companies and investors with African business and political leaders across energy, hydrogen, and broader trade.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Trade & Investment Facilitation Services

NAICS

Convention and Trade Show Organizers (56192), Business Associations (813910)

SIC

International Affairs (9721)

akta.pro primary industry

Finance & Investment Conferences (MPAGAGAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Executive Summits & Invitation-Only Forums (MPAGAGAK)

Keywords

• Trade facilitation services
• Investment forums
• Business networking events
• Africa trade relations
• Investment facilitation

Headquarters

HQ city

Johannesburg

HQ country

South Africa

HQ region

Africa

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership and Partnership Fees: GABF operates as a private think tank, likely funded through membership fees, partnership contributions, and event participation fees from German and African companies seeking to establish investment relationships.
2. Event Organization and Delegation Services: Revenue generated from organizing trade missions, investment delegations, forums, and webinars that connect German investors with African markets and opportunities.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Germany Africa Business Forum (GABF) is a private think tank that organizes forums, trade missions, conference pavilions, and webinar series to connect African executives and political leaders with German companies, investors, and policymakers. It also runs a multi-million Euro funding program for German energy startups focused on Africa. Revenue is generated through membership and partnership fees, event participation, and collaborations with private energy-sector partners.

Product overview

Germany Africa Business Forum (GABF) is a private think tank organization established in 2017 that operates as a business facilitation network rather than a traditional software product company. The organization offers a portfolio of initiatives including forums (Berlin Forum, Munich Forum), trade missions (Mozambique), conference participations (African Energy Week, South Sudan Oil & Power), and an energy startup investment program. GABF connects African business and political leaders with German companies, investors, and innovators through events, delegations, and funding initiatives to strengthen German-African economic relations, particularly in the energy sector including green hydrogen, LNG, and renewable energy.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• GABF Network Facilitation A business networking and relationship facilitation service that connects African executives and political leaders with German companies, policymakers, investors, and innovators to drive investment and strengthen German-African economic ties.
• German-African Energy Startup Investment Program A multi-million Euro funding program for German energy startups focused on Africa, operated in collaboration with private energy-industry partners, providing capital and partnership support for ventures deploying in African energy projects.
• GABF Berlin Forum Recurring flagship GABF forum held in Berlin, exclusively dedicated to strengthening investment ties between Germany and Africa and convening senior African and German stakeholders.
• GABF Munich Forum Forum held in Munich uniting Bavaria and the African continent as trade partners, supported by HypoVereinsbank (UniCredit Bank AG) and endorsed by the Bavarian State Ministry of Economic Affairs.
• Mozambique Trade Mission A trade and investment mission to Mozambique, organized in coordination with Africa Oil & Power during the Mozambique Gas & Power Conference, encouraging German businesses to engage with the Mozambican economy and LNG/gas opportunities.
• German Pavilion at African Energy Week A pavilion at African Energy Week organized and hosted by GABF that convenes European/German energy industry players (e.g., Siemens, Mazars, SustainPower) to promote green hydrogen, energy transition, and natural gas monetization in Africa.
• South Sudan Oil & Power Conference Participation GABF-led participation in the South Sudan Oil & Power conference in Juba, focused on deepening German-South Sudanese economic relations and raising capital and financing for energy and infrastructure projects.
• Namibian Green Hydrogen Investment Forum Delegation German delegation organized by GABF to the Namibian Green Hydrogen Investment Forum in Paris, promoting German technology and innovation in Namibia's hydrogen market.
• Germany-Africa Cooperation Webinar Series A recurring virtual webinar series focused on German-African cooperation, featuring high-level speakers from government and industry to discuss investment, trade, and Africa's economic development.

Quantifiable outcome

• Multi-million Euro funding commitment launched for German energy startups focused on Africa
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 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 minor and core.

• EnertragminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 18 May 2022German company Enertrag is a pioneer in the Namibian hydrogen market through its investment in Hyphen Hydrogen Energy, working with GABF to develop green hydrogen projects in Namibia.
• Namibian Embassy in ParisminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 15 March 2022GABF led a German delegation to the Namibian Green Hydrogen Investment Forum hosted by the Namibian Embassy in Paris, promoting German technology and innovation in Namibia's hydrogen sector.
• Energy Capital & PowerminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 29 June 2021GABF participated in the South Sudan Oil & Power conference organized by Energy Capital & Power in Juba, focusing on raising capital and innovative financing for energy and infrastructure projects.
• Mozambique Ministry of Mineral Resources and Energy (MIREME)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 8 March 2021GABF collaborated with Mozambique's Ministry of Mineral Resources and Energy and the Government of Mozambique during the Mozambique Gas & Power conference to facilitate German investment in LNG and gas projects.
• Africa Oil & Power (AOP)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 October 2020GABF partnered with Africa Oil & Power to organize the Mozambique Gas & Power 2021 Conference & Exhibition and coordinate German investment missions to Mozambique. The partnership facilitated German investor engagement with Mozambique's Ministry of Mineral Resources and Energy and the Government of Mozambique for LNG and gas project opportunities.
• African Energy ChambercoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 24 September 2020The African Energy Chamber co-hosted the GABF webinar series focused on German-African cooperation, featuring NJ Ayuk, Executive Chairman, as a key speaker. The partnership aims to advance German-African cooperation in energy projects.
• African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 24 September 2020Afreximbank participated in GABF webinars and announced plans to sign a Memorandum of Understanding with German automotive manufacturers like Volkswagen to establish an African-driven automobile manufacturing strategy, demonstrating commitment to German-African trade facilitation.
• HypoVereinsbank (UniCredit Bank AG)minorGTM or Marketing Partner · 28 November 2017HypoVereinsbank supported the GABF Munich Forum conference held on November 28, 2017, which united Bavaria and the African continent as ideal trade partners.
• Bavarian State Ministry of Economic Affairs and Media, Energy and TechnologyminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 28 November 2017The Bavarian State Ministry endorsed the GABF Munich Forum, supporting the conference's goal of fostering trade relations between Bavaria and Africa.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• African Energy Chamber: Core strategic partner of GABF that co-hosts energy-focused webinars and events. Functions as an industry chamber promoting African energy investment to international capital — directly comparable on the African Energy Week pavilion concept and energy-sector deal-flow curation.
• Afrika-Verein der deutschen Wirtschaft: The German-African Business Association is the most direct peer: a German industry association promoting trade and investment between Germany and Africa, organizing delegations and conferences across African markets. Overlaps almost one-for-one with GABF's mission, with the distinction that Afrika-Verein is a longer-established, member-association model rather than a privately anchored think tank.
• Southern African-German Chamber of Commerce: Bilaterally focused chamber facilitating German-Southern African trade and investment, with operational presence across Germany, South Africa, and neighboring markets. Comparable to GABF on bilateral facilitation, trade missions, and country-level programming.
• Africa Oil & Power (Energy Capital & Power): Strategic GABF partner and event organizer of Mozambique Gas & Power and South Sudan Oil & Power. Operates the same conference-driven, deal-introduction model for African energy investment — the closest private-sector analogue to GABF on the event-revenue and energy-deal-flow axis.

Others

• B20 South Africa: South Africa-hosted B20 engagement group convening business input for the G20 process in 2025, with investment-promotion programming relevant to German-African trade flows. Adjacent convening capability rather than a direct competitor; demonstrates the alternative institutional pathways GABF must compete with.

Broad incumbents

• Germany Trade & Invest (GTAI): Germany's federal investment-promotion agency, providing market intelligence, trade-mission support, and investment-facilitation services for German companies entering foreign markets including Africa. A state-subsidized competitor to GABF on the trade-promotion and market-intelligence side.
• Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ): Germany's federal development agency, which channels German public funds into African economic partnerships and frequently co-hosts investment and infrastructure events in Africa. Adjacent to GABF on the German-Africa programming axis but oriented around development rather than pure private investment.
• Delegation of German Industry and Commerce in South Africa (AHK Southern Africa): Official bilateral German chamber of commerce with extensive institutional backing from the German government. Provides trade-mission, networking, and market-entry services across the same Germany-Africa corridor as GABF, with greater institutional resources but a more bureaucratic posture.

Emerging players

• EU-Africa Business Forum: Pan-European platform for EU-Africa investment dialogue, organizing summits and working groups under EU institutional auspices. A broader-scale peer in the same investment-facilitation category but with a multi-country European mandate rather than a single bilateral focus.
• Franco-African Chamber of Commerce: Bilateral European-African business chamber focused on French-speaking Africa and South Africa. Operates a similar bilateral-investment facilitation model to GABF in adjacent European capital-source markets — useful as a structural peer even though it does not directly compete for German deal flow.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/GermanyAfrica

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Germany Africa Business Forum