By: Foday Manneh
The Africa Export-Import Bank (AfreximBank), in collaboration with Oakwood Green Africa Limited and the Gambia Investment and Export Promotion Agency (GIEPA), have commenced hosting the second edition of the Gambia Trade Roadshow in Banjul on Tuesday, April 4, 2023.
The event brought together central bank governors, senior banking officials, and the business and private sector from various African countries to discuss the theme, “Sustaining the Intra Africa Trade Drive: Navigating the Last Mile.”
Speaking at the opening event, the Minister of Trade and Regional Integration, Baboucarr Joof, said the AfreximBank has been the catalyst for African governments’ collective actions to support the expansion, diversification, promotion, and development of intra-Africa trade and trade development projects.”
“The roadshow will foster a deeper understanding of bank products in the banking and business communities. In addition, it will reinforce and activate various initiatives in driving Gambia’s participation in the intra-Africa trade to be held in November 2023,” Minister Joof outlined.
On cross-border payment infrastructure development, the Governor of the Central Bank of the Gambia, Buwa Saidy, said his Bank had conducted a life test on commercial banks’ operations in the Pan-African payment system for the facilitation of inter-regional payments across Africa.
“When fully launched, conducting inter-regional trade payments in Africa with African national currencies would become possible. For example, with this development, a Gambian can buy products from Sierra Leone and pay his Dalasis vis-a-vis,” Governor said.
Afreximbank is a Pa-African multilateral financial institution devoted to financing and promoting intra-and-inter-African trade.
The Bank was established in Abuja, Nigeria, in 1993 by African governments, private and institutional investors, non-African financial institutions, and private investors to finance, promote, and expand inter-African and extra-African trade.
The Bank is headquartered in Cairo, Egypt, and commenced operations in 1994. It has branches in Harare, Abuja, and Abidjan, and soon it will be opened another office in East Africa.
The Executive Vice President of the Intra-African Trade Bank, Kanayo Awani, reaffirmed the gathering that the Intra-Africa trade would fundamentally transform Africa’s economic structure and significantly reduce Africa’s reliance on the export of primary commodities.
“It will also promote youth employment and bridge a gap that has divided Africans for too long,” she said.
