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Thursday, March 22, 2018 10:00AM / Afreximbank
The
African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) will disburse about $25 billion
dollars in support of intra-African trade during the five years ending in 2021
under an Intra-African Trade Strategy it launched in 2016 in anticipation of
the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), Dr. Benedict Oramah,
President of the Bank, announced today in Kigali.
Speaking
during a special luncheon for heads of states and delegates attending the
signing of the agreement for the launch of the AfCFTA, Dr. Oramah said that the
Strategy drew inspiration from the African Union’s Action Plan for Boosting
Intra-African Trade and the Action Plan for Accelerated Industrial Development
in Africa.
It
sought to contribute to providing end-to-end and comprehensive solutions to
smoothen the conduct of cross-border trade and investment activities across
Africa, he said.
The
signing of the AfCFTA agreement promised to build a solid foundation for
prosperity for all Africans, stated Dr. Oramah who added that “Afreximbank is,
therefore, prepared, willing and able to play its role to make sure that
opportunities created by the history-making step taken by African leaders are
fully realized”.
He
announced that, as part of the Intra-African trade Strategy, Afreximbank had
opened credit lines amounting to $800 million to 55 banks across Africa in
order to facilitate the confirmation of letters of credit in support of
intra-African trade. The Bank’s goal was to extend such lines to at least 500
banks in all African countries by 2021 in order to significantly reduce the
cost of intra-African trade finance and to counter the constraints posed by
country risks.
The
President added that the inaugural Intra-African Trade Fair, which the Bank was
organizing in collaboration with the African Union in Cairo from 11 to 17
December, would attract more than 1,000 exhibitors and bring in some 70,000
visitors.
Afreximbank
was also on the verge of launching an Intra-African Trade Platform that would
facilitate the clearing and settlement of intra-African trade transactions in
African currencies and significantly reduce the use of hard currencies in the
settlement of such trade, Dr. Oramah added.
Earlier
in the day, during a ceremony held at the Kigali Convention Centre, 44 African
countries signed the Agreement Establishing the AfCFTA and 43 countries signed
the Kigali Declaration for the Launch of the AfCFTA.
A
third document, the Protocol to the Treaty Establishing the African Economic
Community relating to Free Movement of Persons, Right of Residence and Right of
Establishment, garnered 25 signatures.
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