Apex bank to boost trade finance across Africa

16:10 - 27 May 2016

The president of the African Development Bank (AfDB) Akinwumi Adesina of Nigeria speaks during his investiture ceremony in Abidjan September 1, 2015. REUTERS/Luc Gnago

This move will help address critical market demand for trade finance in Africa by offering support for trade in vital economic sectors such as agribusiness and manufacturing.

Media reports say the African Development Bank (AfDB) is planning to expand its trade finance products across the continent in the coming years as it seeks to bridge the existing funding gap to support trade transactions.

Africa currently faces a funding gap of approximately US $120 billion in trade finance, reports say.

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This decision was announced on Thursday, May 26, during an event on “Trade Finance - Fostering Regional Integration and South-South Cooperation” hosted during the ongoing annual meeting of the African Development Bank in Lusaka, Zambia.

“AfDB will scale up its efforts to enhance trade finance in the future,” said the AfDB's head of trade finance operations, Yaw Kuffour, adding that his department has submitted a proposal to the Bank’s Board of Directors to at least double funding to facilitate trade finance.

Back in 2013, the Board of the AfDB approved a $1-billion trade finance program to support African trade and provide financing to under-served African-based financial institutions and enterprises.