Afreximbank ready to partner with African banks to boost their capacity

Amr Kamel, the executive Vice President in charge of Business Development and Corporate Banking at the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), has said they are ready to work with African banks and bankers and to ensure that the banks are well-equipped to deal with the risks in financing trade under a difficult politico-economic environment and changing trade counter-parties.

Kamel was speaking at the Afreximbank Trade Finance Seminar and Workshop which was attended by more than 200 participants, including senior executives from African banks, financial institutions, regulatory institutions.

It was organised by Afreximbank in collaboration with the South African province of Kwazulu-Natal.

The training had been structured to ensure that participants acquired the capacity to structure bankable trade finance deals of varying levels of complexity, he stated.

“As Banks, we all play a critical role in promoting trade,” said Mr. Kamel.

He said that 2019 would go down as a watershed in Africa’s history, being the year when the continent came together to affirm its commitment to addressing its economic and social problems through the launch of the operational phase of the African Free Trade Continental Agreement (AfCFTA).

“This should provide traders across Africa with preferential trading arrangements to enable them to enhance the level of intra-African trade and enhance economic growth for our countries,” he said.

Also speaking, Sihle Zikalala, Premier of KwaZulu-Natal Province, said that the province aimed to position itself as the gateway to South Africa and the entire Southern African region.

It aspired to act increasingly as a transmission belt between global and regional markets and production facilities, he explained, adding that the government was working to develop a robust economy that could sustainably create employment, fight poverty and become more globally competitive.

Earlier, Nomusa Dube-Ncube, Member of the Kwazulu-Natal Executive Council responsible for Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs, welcomed the seminar participants to Durban.