Afreximbank to boost intra-African trade financing to $40bn by 2026

African Export-Import Bank is set to boost its financing of intra-African trade to $40 billion on a revolving basis by 2026. This announcement comes after the bank’s intra-African trade financing reached $20 billion in 2021.

Based on a National News Agency report, Mrs. Kanayo Awani, the Executive Vice President of Afreximbank, revealed this during the Intra-African Trade Fair 2023 (IATF) Nigeria High-Level Business Roadshow held in Lagos.

The IATF 2023 event, scheduled for November 9 to November 15 in Egypt, is jointly organized by Afreximbank, the African Union Commission, and the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat.

The IATF serves as a platform for businesses to access an integrated African market, encompassing over 1.3 billion people with a gross domestic product (GDP) exceeding $3.5 trillion, created under the AfCFTA.

Awani emphasized that Afreximbank is collaborating with the AfCFTA Secretariat to establish the Adjustment Fund, aimed at providing support through financing, technical assistance, grants, and compensation funding to AfCFTA state parties and private enterprises.

Afreximbank’s Board has already approved and allocated $1 billion to fund this initiative, along with a $10 million grant to aid the establishment and operationalization of the adjustment fund.

The bank stated that it is working in partnership with the AfCFTA Secretariat and the African Union to ensure the successful implementation of the Pan-African Payments and Settlements System (PAPSS).

This system is designed to facilitate payment and settlements of trade transactions in local currencies, addressing the challenges of currency inconvertibility and foreign exchange shortages that have hindered intra-African trade.

Awani further highlighted Afreximbank’s efforts in leveraging digitalization through the African Trade. Moreover, Afreximbank is collaborating with the International Trade Centre to train African companies, including SMEs, on how to export under the AfCFTA.