Wef 2025: Sp Global Ratings Insists That It Rates Africa Fairly

Yann Le Pallec, president of ratings agency S P Global, delivered a robust defense of the sector during a panel discussion hosted by Africa House at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

While the practices of the ratings agencies have come under intense scrutiny in recent times, with some analysts insisting that they impose an unfair premium on African countries in particular, Le Pallec emphasised that their evaluations are grounded in rigorous, data-driven methodologies.

Responding to Mamadou Toure, co-founder of Africa House, who moderated the session, who argued that countries in other continents with similar or lower levels of stability are rated higher than African countries, Le Pallec pointed out that ratings agencies exist to provide investors with the right information to inform their decision making.

We do fundamental credit analysis, which means that we try to assess whether a country is likely to pay back its debt according to terms and conditions of the bonds, which are likely bought on the international market, he explained.

Le Pallec noted that the methodology employed by ratings agencies are transparent and publicly available, which he said means that third parties can verify and even replicate the model to check the conclusions they arrive at.