World Bank executive director Harold Tavares on Monday argued that job creation should be one of the primary criteria for evaluating the success of investments and economic policies across Africa. He made the case at the opening of the 2nd Lusophone Africa Investment Forum, held on the island of Sal, in Cabo Verde.

"The greatest challenge facing the African continent today is creating employment," Tavares said, adding that "Africa's greatest asset is not underground, nor in its geography — it is in its people." Tavares represents 23 countries within the World Bank Group, including Cabo Verde, Guinea-Bissau, São Tomé and Príncipe, and Equatorial Guinea.

According to Tavares, up to 12 million young Africans enter the labour market each year, making job creation a continental priority. He argued that the success of policies and investments must therefore be measured by their capacity to generate sufficient and sustainable employment.

Tavares noted that priorities differ from country to country. Angola and Mozambique need to diversify their economies, while Cabo Verde and São Tomé and Príncipe should increase the economic value generated by tourism and maritime resources. In Guinea-Bissau, he identified agriculture as one of the sectors with the greatest potential.

The World Bank executive director acknowledged that public investment, while not sufficient on its own, plays an important role in creating conditions for new initiatives. He added that private capital is available but that risk perceptions deter investors, and called for stronger guarantee mechanisms to facilitate investment across Africa. On governance, he said that "every reform delivered lowers the risk premium," while delays produce the opposite effect.

Tavares also urged the Portuguese-speaking African countries — known by the acronym PALOP — to consider establishing an Atlantic port corridor linked to the Indian Ocean coastline in Mozambique. The proposal was put forward at the forum, which runs Monday and Tuesday on the island of Sal, and is organised by the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the World Bank Group member dedicated to private sector investment in developing countries.

The opening session was attended by Cabo Verde's interim president, Janira Hopffer Almada, and IFC Vice-President for Africa Ethiopis Tafara. Speaking at the session, Tafara said the holding of the forum's second edition "sends a message" of the institution's commitment "to Lusophone countries."

Tafara returned to an idea first raised at the 2025 edition: transforming the fragmented economies of the PALOP nations into an integrated market of roughly 80 million people with a combined gross domestic product of US$132 billion. According to the organisers, the forum aims to connect investment opportunities with capital, foster new business partnerships, and strengthen economic ties between Lusophone countries and international investors.

The gathering is held under the theme "Investing in Lusophone Africa: Leveraging Corridors, Developing Agribusiness and Driving Sustainable Tourism." According to updated IFC data, the institution has mobilised approximately US$1.2 billion for ten projects across Portuguese-speaking African countries over the past five years.