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African countries should reflect on how to meaningfully contribute to Africa’s recovery process after the Covid-19 pandemic and speed up intra-africa trade.
Bank of Ghana Governor, Dr. Ernest Yedu Addison, said this on Sunday at the 30th Anniversary of the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) Annual Meetings (AAM) in Accra.
This year’s AAM meetings are held under the theme ‘Delivering the vision: Building prosperity for Africa.’
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Addison said as African countries celebrate Afreximbank’s 30 years anniversary, it was important to reflect on how to improve africa trade performance in the global market place through the creation of the single market for goods and services.
He further stated that there was need to promote industrial development through diversification and regional value chain development as well as enhance the capital flows into Africa.
“Since its establishment three decades ago Afreximbank has transitioned into a first class multilateral financial institution championing African trade and driving growth across multiple sectors in Africa
“Evidence of the bank’s intervention include infrastructure investment to support intra-Africa trade, investment in agriculture and industry, trade facilitation, trade quarantee and advisory services and support to country ‘s specific programmes,” Addison said.
He noted that the bank had also introduced a number of platforms designed to improve trade in Africa such as the Payment Settlement System and Intra-African Trade Fair, among others.
Addison added that during the three decades, Afreximbank has achieved several milestone in line with the vision of the agenda 2063: The Africa We Want.
Speaking at the same event, Minister of Finance of Egypt and Chairman of the AAM, Mohammed Ahmed Maalt, commended the bank for its efforts and achievements in 2022 for developing and implementing new solutions to alleviate trade problems on the continent.
Maalt said it was important for African to work collaboratively towards finding integrated solutions to the new challenges confronting the continent.
He said the 2023 edition of the AAM should lead into a more constructive solutions to addressing Africa’s challenges, stating that Afreximbank as one of the African institutions was delivering on the African Union’s Vision 2026.
African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat Secretary General, Wamkele Mene, stated that if trade barriers were eliminated but there was no trade finance, all the efforts would come to nothing.
Mene further said if trade finance was available but trade barriers persisted and prevented trade, then all the efforts would still have been wasted.
He commended the Bank for the support and collaboration, which he said Afreximbank had provided for the implementation of the AfCFTA, including the introduction of the AfCFTA adjustment fund and establishment of the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System.
Mene said this support was critical as Africa sought to rely on itself to create a better future.
Mahamadou Issoufou, former President of Niger, said this when he delivered a keynote address to kickstart the discussion that with Africa accounting for a significant proportion of the world’s arable land, it was time for the continent to be able to feed itself.
He noted that a focus on agriculture and agro-industrtialisation would also lead to creation of employment.
Issoufou commended Afreximbank for its support to the AfCFTA project, which had included supplying indispensable personnel, in addition to making investments, such as the AfCFTA Adjustment Fund.
He said this has helped countries adapt to the AfCFTA and improve their ability to compete in the new trade regime for which the Bank had already provided US$1 billion.
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