Why DMA Invest Is Taking Its UK-Africa Forum to Conakry

DMA Invest, a UK-based advisory firm focused on emerging and frontier markets, will hold the fifth edition of its West and Central Africa Francophone UK Forum (WCAF V) in Conakry, Guinea, from 19 to 21 October 2026. The organisers say they expect more than 1,000 participants and want to move beyond introductions: the event is designed to connect governments, investors, banks, UK finance institutions and project sponsors around projects that can actually reach financing.

In an interview with Forbes Afrique, Kady Doumbia, DMA Invest's head of strategy and government relations, said the firm usually starts with priorities expressed by African governments, then works with British embassies and national investment promotion agencies to shape missions and forums. It then brings in UK institutions such as UK Export Finance and British International Investment, alongside private banks, investors and companies, and collaborates with the Department for Business and Trade — renamed in July 2026 as the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade.

DMA Invest says its broader work since 2007 has contributed to more than $15 billion of investment and capital flows. For the WCAF events specifically, it puts the accumulated investment pipeline at close to $2 billion. The firm selected Guinea because the government formally asked to host the event; previous WCAF III in London led Togo to request that the forum be held on the continent, and Lomé hosted the following edition. Guinea's Simandou mining project and its infrastructure, energy, agriculture, logistics, water and urban development needs are cited as core opportunities.

The forum will also feature "Deal Rooms" where selected project sponsors meet investors and banks directly. According to Doumbia, projects are screened for alignment with national priorities, market need, financial viability, technical preparation, and social and environmental impact. Countries from the Alliance of Sahel States will attend as observers, with a particular focus on their private sectors.

What the WCAF Model Reveals About Closing African Infrastructure Deals

Intermediation, not direct financing

DMA Invest's role is matchmaking and deal preparation rather than funding. The $15 billion figure covers all activities since 2007 and is presented as a contribution to investment flows, not verified lending. The more useful target is WCAF's reported near-$2 billion pipeline, but that also remains a self-reported estimate. What the interview clarifies is that DMA wants to be judged by contracts signed, projects entering financing and partnerships that endure after the forum — not by headcount.

Guinea and the Simandou anchor

Hosting in Conakry gives the forum proximity to Guinea's mining potential, especially Simandou, but the agenda extends to energy, water, infrastructure, agriculture, logistics, health and digital services. For a country needing capital across many sectors, presenting a single flagship mining project may attract attention, while the broader portfolio is what determines whether investors leave with several actionable opportunities. The host choice also repeats a pattern: a government actively seeks the event, rather than the organiser selecting a venue.

The Sahel observer status

Inviting Alliance of Sahel States countries as observers, with attention to their private sectors, signals an intention to widen regional cooperation. Observer status does not imply financing commitments, but it gives businesses from those countries access to the forum's matching mechanisms and could help normalise private-sector links with UK institutions. The source does not specify which sectors or projects will be represented.

Deal Rooms as a screening mechanism

The selection criteria are more instructive than the promised participation number: national alignment, clear market need, financial viability, technical readiness, and social and environmental impact. That means sponsors should arrive with transaction-ready documentation. The forum is an origination channel, not a substitute for due diligence or credit approval by UK Export Finance, British International Investment or commercial lenders.

What Sponsors, Investors and Governments Should Do Before WCAF V

  • Project sponsors targeting Conakry: prepare against the Deal Room criteria explicitly named — national priority alignment, demonstrated market demand, financial viability, technical readiness, and social/environmental impact — because screening happens before the event.
  • Investors and UK finance institutions: treat the forum as a source of pre-filtered prospects in Guinea's mining, energy, water, infrastructure, agriculture, logistics and urban development sectors, but complete your own due diligence; the $2bn WCAF pipeline is DMA Invest's estimate, not closed commitments.
  • Guinean and regional government agencies: use the host role to convert Simandou-related visibility into a wider portfolio of bankable projects, since Doumbia says energy is the precondition for industrial, urban and agricultural development.
  • Sahel private-sector participants: clarify before October which investors and banks will be present in the Deal Rooms, because observer status gives access but does not itself secure financing.
  • Corporate partners evaluating the forum's value: track the specific outputs DMA says it will measure after the event — projects validated in Deal Rooms, contracts signed, financing mandates obtained, and B2B/B2G progress — rather than the 1,000-participant target.

Risk & Opportunity Assessment

Commercial RiskMediumDMA Invest's advisory and events business depends on sustaining investor, government and sponsor participation; if WCAF V does not convert its reported near-$2bn pipeline into signed contracts or financing mandates, future editions in the region may become harder to fund and fill.
Competitive RiskMediumDoumbia concedes DMA Invest is not the only source of financing for the region; competing investment forums, national investment promotion agencies and direct UKEF/BII deal sourcing can bypass the consultancy's matchmaking role.
Regulatory RiskLowCross-border financing involving UKEF, BII and Guinea or Sahel-state counterparties will still require national approvals and environmental/social standards; the Deal Rooms screen impact but do not pre-approve transactions.
Reputation RiskMediumThe $15bn total and $2bn WCAF pipeline figures are self-reported and not independently verified; any gap between forum announcements and closed deals could erode credibility with the governments and UK institutions DMA depends on.
Technology DisruptionLowThe projects in focus — mining, infrastructure, energy, water and logistics — are not primarily exposed to rapid technology substitution, though digital and energy-transition criteria will affect project design.
Commercial OpportunityHighGuinea's Simandou mining project and broader infrastructure, energy and urban development needs offer large capital deployment opportunities, and DMA reports a WCAF pipeline near $2bn for participants who meet its selection standards.