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The African Development Bank (AfDB) and Japanese drone manufacturer Aerosense Inc. have formalized a collaborative pact aimed at expanding drone-based solutions in Africa.
The Letter of Intent was signed on Thursday, August 21, during the 9th Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD9) in Yokohama, co-hosted by leading global institutions.
Mr. Solomon Quaynor, AfDB Vice President overseeing Private Sector, Infrastructure, and Industrialization, and Mr. Kohtaro Sabe, President & CEO of Aerosense Inc., affixed their signatures to the agreement.
The agreement outlines a framework for shared expertise, coordinated initiatives, and potential co-investment opportunities.
Specifically, it aims to promote sustainable infrastructure development across the continent by enabling both parties to align their efforts and resources.
Aerosense’s drone solution caught the Bank’s attention after being selected through a June 2025 call for proposals under the Sustainable Road Maintenance Program for Africa (SRMPA)—a flagship AfDB initiative focused on innovative “InfraTech” for road upkeep.
While the partnership will initially support road infrastructure monitoring and maintenance, both AfDB and Aerosense foresee broader applications.
Mr. Quaynor emphasized the initiative’s ambition:
“This program is a bold response to Africa’s growing infrastructure challenges… we will not only promote efficient road management but also consider other unique solutions such as disaster management, river/flood control, agricultural sensing, and medical equipment delivery.”
Mr. Sabe expressed optimism: “It is a great honor to serve the people in Africa with our Japanese technology for enhancing their quality of life. We are looking forward to collaborating with AfDB to build a better future together in a concrete manner.”
TICAD9, held from August 20 to 22, 2025, is Japan’s flagship biennial conference designed to spark multi-sector investment and development collaboration in Africa.
Conversations at the event have spotlighted themes like resilience-building, infrastructure funding, and private-sector engagement—creating fertile ground for deals like the AfDB‑Aerosense collaboration.
Technological solutions like drone integration are increasingly crucial for tackling Africa’s infrastructure maintenance gap.
According to AfDB data, only around 27 percent of Africa’s approximately 2.5 million km of roads are paved, compared to much higher rates globally Asian Development Bank.
This imbalance, paired with limited public financing, underlines the urgent need for tools like drone surveillance to enhance efficiency, resilience, and cost-effectiveness.
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