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Ghana To Host 2026 Africa Real Estate Festival, bridging investment, policy, and culture
The Africa Real Estate Festival (AREF) is set to return in 2026 with an ambitious vision to redefine urban living across the continent.
Scheduled for April 18-19, 2026, in Accra, the festival will convene under the theme: “Innovation Meets Identity: Designing Africa’s Next Living Experience – Positioning Real Estate as More Than Just Property.”
Speaking at the press launch in Accra on Friday, January 16, 2026, the Founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of AREF, Desmond Oteng, described the festival as a movement rather than a one-off event, driven by the urgency of Africa’s rapid urbanisation.
“Africa is urbanising faster than any other continent. By 2050, over 1.4 billion Africans will live in cities, yet our real estate conversations still focus on buildings and prices instead of people, quality of life, and sustainability,” he said.
According to him, AREF seeks to reposition real estate as a catalyst for economic transformation, climate responsibility, cultural identity, youth empowerment, diaspora engagement, and inclusive urban growth.
The maiden festival will be held in Accra on April 18 and 19, 2026, and will convene policymakers, developers, investors, architects, planners, financial institutions, prop-tech innovators, and diaspora stakeholders from across Africa and the global African community.
Although hosted in Ghana, he stressed that AREF is a continental platform with plans to expand into other African countries.
“Our focus is intentional city building. Africa does not need more unplanned cities or gated silos. We need connected communities and functional urban ecosystems that work for people,” he noted.
The festival seeks to position real estate as a catalyst for cultural expression, technological innovation, and sustainable economic growth.
He went on to disclose that the event will bring together over 1,500 delegates, over 100 exhibitors from more than 30 countries, and over 50 renowned speakers, alongside significant government and diaspora representation.
International interest in AREF was underscored by the presence of Juliette Bynoe-Sutherland, High Commissioner of Barbados to Ghana, who announced Barbados’ participation in the festival. She described AREF as a practical bridge between diplomacy, investment, and sustainable development.
“Real estate today is no longer just about property ownership. It is about the full ecosystem, capital flows, lifestyle assets, and long-term value creation,” she said.
She highlighted Barbados’ experience, where real estate contributes about 18 percent of national GDP, supported by political stability, clear legal frameworks, progressive tax policies, and strong community education.
According to her, the Barbadian model offers valuable lessons for Ghana and other African coastal states, particularly in tourism-linked real estate, coastal conservation, health tourism, retirement living, and sustainable community planning.
The High Commissioner also revealed growing interest among Barbadians and Caribbean investors in Ghana, noting a sharp increase in travel and enquiries about property ownership following visits to the country.
From the government perspective, the Deputy Director of Diaspora Affairs Office of the President, Nana Kyere Agyemang, outlined Ghana’s evolving strategy to deepen diaspora participation in the real estate sector. He explained that the focus is shifting from informal remittances to structured investment and asset creation.
“Our objective is to move beyond remittances for consumption and toward remittances for asset building,” he said.
He identified three key priority areas: capital market integration through real estate investment trusts and diaspora bonds, improved regulatory transparency through digital land governance, and sustainability under the African Continental Free Trade Area framework.
He also noted plans to incentivise commercial real estate developments that serve as logistics hubs for intra-African trade.
Mr. Agyemang commended the AREF team for the speed and commitment with which the initiative has been executed, reaffirming government openness to partnerships that strengthen Ghana’s real estate ecosystem.
AREF’s unique model bridges real estate with sectors such as technology, finance, tourism, logistics, media, and culture, creating a shared platform for investment and partnership.
The festival will offer a curated, multi-faceted programme designed to inform, connect, and inspire.
Core pillars include the strategic Investment & Policy Conference; the transactional hub of the Real Estate Exhibition and Diaspora Investment Pavilion; the aspirational Luxury Experience & Lifestyle Showcase; and the forward-looking Cultural Festival & Innovation Matchmaking segment.
This will be complemented by a series of interactive workshops, demonstrations, and structured networking forums, ensuring a comprehensive and actionable experience for all participants.
With a target of generating over $200 million in investment leads, AREF aims to boost investor confidence and foster cross-sector deals. The event will also produce The AREF Report 2026, a data-driven publication on real estate trends and opportunities across Africa.
Beyond 2026, AREF plans to expand into a continent-wide circuit, hosting regional editions to promote sustainable urban innovation, economic collaboration, and cultural celebration.
Organised by the pan-African organisation Africa Real Estate Festival, the event is supported by year-round initiatives in research, PropTech acceleration, policy advocacy, and networking.
About Africa Real Estate Festival (AREF)
AREF is a pan-African platform dedicated to empowering the real estate ecosystem through events, research, innovation programs, and partnerships.
It connects all stakeholders across the value chain to drive sustainable growth, investment, and culturally grounded development in Africa’s built environment.
High level speakers at the forum include; H. E. Juliette Bynoe-Sutherland Barbados, High Commissioner to Ghana,
A former Sec ond Lady, Mrs Matilda Amis sah-Arthur, has called for urgent action to bridge literacy gaps among young girls in the country to advance gender equality.
She stressed that improving lit eracy among girls was essential not only for women’s empowerment but also for national development.
“Addressing the literacy gap is not a woman’s issue. It is a nation al necessity and, with the passing of the Affirmative Action (Gender Equality) Act, 2024, Ghana is signalling that women belong in leadership, but leadership begins with a book,” she said.
Mrs Amissah-Arthur made the call at an event organised by the Ghana Library Authority (GLA) in Accra yesterday to mark Interna tional Women’s Day (IWD) on the theme: “Her Voice in Libraries: Women Transforming Literacy in Ghana.”
According to her, many girls in Ghana still drop out of school due to poverty, lack of mentorship and limited support systems, warning that without deliberate interven tions some risk becoming part of worrying national statistics.
The former Second Lady encouraged students, particularly girls, to see education not only as a tool for personal advancement but also as a means of empowering future generations.
“Don’t shy away from STEM and ICT subjects. Break into the male-dominated areas and bridge the digital divide,” she added.
Mrs Amissah-Arthur also called for stronger partnerships between men and women in advancing gen der equality, stressing that the issue should be viewed as a national development priority rather than solely a women’s concern.
“Gender equality is not a woman’s issue. It is a development issue. It requires partnership, respect and shared responsibility,” she said.
She further expressed opti mism that with the right support systems, every child, regardless of gender, could achieve their full potential.
In a remark, the Chief Director of the Ministry of Education, Lydia Essuah, said that despite progress made in promoting gender equality in the education sector, challenges remained in ensuring progression, completion and quality learning outcomes for all learners.
She highlighted the important role of libraries in advancing liter acy and lifelong learning skills, and called for increased investment in library infrastructure and services to help build a knowledge-driven society.
The Executive Director of the Ghana Library Authority, Alhassan Ziblim Bentintiche, also under scored the importance of libraries in empowering young people, par ticularly girls, with access to books, digital resources and mentorship opportunities.
He disclosed plans to expand Ghana’s library infrastructure and services to particularly attract the youth and promote literacy.
BY ABIGAIL ANNOH
Management of the Metro Mass Transit Limited has accused the government of former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo of pursuing what it describes as a “create, loot and share” agenda in the sale of portions of the Opera Square Bus Terminal to a private developer.
The Deputy Managing Director of the company, Haroun Apaw-Wiredu, raised the concerns while speaking to journalists at the Opera Square Bus Terminal in Accra on Thursday, March 12, 2026.
He indicated that the management of Metro Mass Transit would not tolerate any further unauthorized development at the terminal and would take steps to protect the property.
According to him, it would be wrong for a private developer to take control of state property for personal economic gain while the company and the public remain silent.
“How can we sit down and allow a private developer, just for his selfish economic gains, to capture state property for himself? No, we cannot sit down,” he stressed.
Mr Apaw Wiredu called on the public to resist what he described as attempts to take over state assets, adding that such actions would disadvantage ordinary citizens.
“Ladies and gentlemen, we must all stand up. We must all wake up. We must fight this level of brazen looting and attempts to milk the system at the expense of ordinary Ghanaians,” he indicated.
He explained that some individuals had been operating around the terminal for many years and alleged that the developer gained access to the land during the previous administration.
Mr Apaw Wiredu stressed that under the leadership of President John Dramani Mahama, the company would pursue all legitimate means to protect the terminal from what he described as unlawful takeover.
He added that management would use every legal avenue available to defend the property and prevent any attempt to take control of the land without proper authorization.
By: Jacob Aggrey
