The Most Important Conversation Canada Isn’t Having About Africa

Canada is looking for new economic partners. As Prime Minister Carney travels the world inking new deals, one region on the map remains relatively untouched.

Africa is a land of opportunity. Africa is home to 60% of the world’s solar potential, and has the world’s youngest population, projected to represent one fourth of the world’s population by 2050. 

While Canada looks to Europe and Asia for new partnerships, our prospective partners are already laying the groundwork in Africa. They act in response to a reality that Canada has recognized in words, but not action.  

The question is no longer whether Africa matters to Canada. The question is whether Canada is prepared to act on the opportunity before it. 

EWB has been mobilizing advocates over the past year through our Flip the Switch campaign to bring this opportunity directly to Parliamentarians. Last year, in a coordinated social media campaign, more than 100 students directly called on Minister of International Trade Maninder Sidhu to #FlipTheSwitch and power opportunities between Canada and Africa. At our xChange 2026 National Conference, delegates signed more than 50 postcards urging Prime Minister Mark Carney to prioritize deepening his – and Canada’s – relationships within Africa. Throughout the winter, our members took their voices to their local Members of Parliament, speaking directly about why Canada must deepen its partnerships in Africa.

Our members not only called for action, but took action themselves. Through the EWB Flip the Switch Case Competition, EWB chapter members explored tangible opportunities for Canada to advance mutually beneficial  energy development across Africa. Their research is clear. Electricity demand is rising rapidly in countries like Zambia and Senegal. Consumer spending is projected to reach trillions of dollars in the coming decades. Opportunities are abound for Canada to support grid expansion, renewable energy deployment, and infrastructure development while building mutually beneficial trade and investment relationships. 

This is the message that EWB delegates, alongside partners at the ONE Campaign, brought to Parliament Hill on Africa Day. EWB’s first Day on the Hill in 3 years. 

Meeting with Members of Parliament, our advocates called on elected officials to elevate Africa within Canada’s foreign policy conversations and encourage deeper political engagement with African partners. More specifically, they encouraged Prime Minister Carney to undertake bilateral visits to African countries, which would signal Canada’s commitment to strengthening relationships and help move Canada-Africa cooperation higher on the government’s agenda.  

 As conversations continue in Ottawa about Canada’s economic future, national security and place in the world, Africa cannot remain on the sidelines. The opportunities are too significant, and the stakes of not being at the tables are too high. 

Canada has expertise in renewable energy, infrastructure development, engineering, and finance. African countries are advancing ambitious plans for industrial growth, energy access, and economic transformation. Working together through genuine partnership can create jobs, strengthen economies, and support a more sustainable future for both regions.

The opportunity is clear. What remains is the political will to make Africa a greater priority in Canada’s foreign policy, trade, and development agenda. Across the country, a new generation of engineers and advocates is already making that case. Through national advocacy efforts, young Canadians are developing practical solutions to shared global challenges and bringing those ideas directly to decision-makers, and this spirit is alive and only growing at EWB Canada. 

Canada’s future prosperity will depend on the partnerships it chooses to build today, and Africa must be one of them.