eBusiness Weekly
Business Writer
The African Union is considering making the African Export and Import Bank (Afreximbank) its specialised agency in matters of trade and finance, commissioner for Trade and Industry of the African Union Commission Albert Muchanga has said.
Addressing the AfriCaribbean Trade and Investment Forum (ACTIF2022) held in Bridgetown, Barbados last week, Muchanga said the Afreximbank had requested to be made a specialised agency of the AU and the continental body is in the final stages of finanalising that request.
“I am very confident that in February next year (2023) when the matter is put before the Heads of States and Government that there should be a broad based agreement that the Afreximbank is a specialised agency of the African Union on matters, among others, of trade finance.” If appointed as a specialised agent, the Afreximbank will be able to attend the policy organ meetings by right instead of waiting for invitations, explained Muchanga.
In an interview with Business Weekly, on the sidelines of ACTIF202 Muchanga said the special agency status will also allow the Afreximbank to contribute to the development of African Financial Institutions.
He said while the Afreximbank is specialised in trade finance, there are plans by the AU to create African financial institutions including an African central bank, an African stock exchange, an African Monetary Fund and an African Investment Bank.
“We are deepening financial institutions across Africa,” he said.
Commenting on the matter, Denys Denya, executive vice president, finance, administration and banking services at the Afreximbank told Business Weekly that the reason the Afreximbank want to be specialised agent of the AU is to be able to not only sit on the table but to also become “an implementation instrument for things that matter to our Heads of States”.
“We have already got the support of African ministers of finance who met in Zambia and approved that Afreximbank should be a specialised agency on trade finance matters.
“We are already a trade finance bank for Africa and the next step is just to get the Heads of States to then adopt that,” Denya said.
Afreximbank is a Pan-African multilateral financial institution mandated to finance and promote intra-and extra-African trade.
A stalwart supporter of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), Afreximbank has launched a Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) that was adopted by the African Union (AU) as the payment and settlement platform to underpin the implementation of the AfCFTA.
Afreximbank is also working with the AU and the AfCFTA Secretariat to develop an Adjustment Facility to support countries in effectively participating in the AfCFTA.
At the end of 2021, the Bank’s total assets and guarantees stood at about US$25 billion, and its shareholder funds amounted to US$4 billion.
Afreximbank disbursed more than US$51 billion between 2016 and 2021. Zimbabwe got US$1,8 billion in 2021 from the Afreximbank.
