In a continent hungry for transformation, Rachel Moré‑Oshodi is engineering more than just projects, she’s building a future. As the CEO and Managing Director of ARM‑Harith Infrastructure Investments Ltd, Rachel is behind some of the most groundbreaking infrastructure deals across Africa, overseeing financing and structuring for projects worth over $7 billion. But beyond boardrooms and billion-dollar balance sheets, her mission is clear: connect capital with purpose, and leave no generation behind.
Born between two worlds, Europe’s structured cities and Africa’s untapped landscapes, Rachel grew up with a unique vantage point. “I saw what was possible, and I saw what was missing,” she often reflects. That contrast seeded a lifelong passion for redrawing Africa’s future through infrastructure, equity, and access.
Her career reads like a masterclass in global finance and strategic influence. She cut her teeth at AES Corporation, managing electricity generation assets across continents, and later moved into high-impact roles at institutions like the Inter-American Development Bank and the International Finance Corporation (IFC). By the time she was leading infrastructure finance at Rand Merchant Bank and later serving as Deputy Vice President at TotalEnergies Africa, Rachel had already emerged as one of the continent’s most trusted voices in sustainable investment.
When she took the helm at ARM‑Harith in early 2024, it wasn’t just a corporate appointment, it was a signal. Under her leadership, the firm mobilized record capital into strategic sectors: renewable energy, transport, climate resilience, and digital infrastructure. One standout? An innovative, FX risk-hedged structure that unlocked £31 million in local pension fund investment for infrastructure, a first in Nigeria’s financial landscape. The UK’s FSDAi injected £10 million to back the deal, opening doors for more African institutional capital to follow.
But Rachel’s ambition goes beyond highways and power grids. She’s equally focused on financial access at the grassroots level, especially for the next generation. Her fintech platform Ruwah is a bold new venture teaching kids aged 7–18 across Africa how to master money early. Combining e-learning with a prepaid debit card and real-time analytics, Ruwah empowers African families to build intergenerational wealth and break the cycle of financial illiteracy. It’s no surprise Fast Company put her on their cover, hailing Ruwah as “a game-changer for economic education.”
In boardrooms, she commands the room with data, vision, and clarity. Outside the office, she mentors young professionals, sits on advisory panels, and continues to elevate conversations around gender equity and climate finance. A Harvard Business School alumna and MBA graduate from the University of Virginia’s Darden School, Rachel is as comfortable decoding macroeconomic policy as she is redesigning community finance.
The accolades have followed, Forbes Africa’s 50 Most Powerful Women, Fast Company’s Most Creative People in Business, and GQ South Africa’s Woman Changing the Continent. Yet for Rachel, the real power lies in what remains to be built.
“Africa doesn’t need sympathy,” she says with calm conviction. “It needs structure, smart capital, and strong will. We’re not waiting for the future, we’re financing it now.”
At Empire Africa we celebrate those who move the continent forward, Rachel Moré‑Oshodi stands at the nexus of innovation, leadership, and generational impact. In her world, infrastructure is not just about roads or railways, it’s about dignity, inclusion, and lasting legacy.
