On Thursday, 21st November 2024, Professor Benedict Oramah, President and Chairman of Afreximbank, delivered the Royal African Society (RAS) Annual Lecture at the Sammy Ofer Centre, London Business School. The event brought together a distinguished audience of business leaders, diplomats, policymakers, and academics. Prof. Oramah outlined Africa’s ambitious journey towards trade and economic transformation, with a particular emphasis on the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA).

Earlier in the day, during an interview with The Southern African Times, Prof. Oramah shared insights on Afreximbank’s initiatives supporting the AfCFTA. He highlighted the introduction of the Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF) and the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS). “Working closely with the AfCFTA Secretariat, we launched PAPSS and the IATF, both adopted by the African Union as critical platforms underpinning the implementation of the AfCFTA,” he remarked.

The upcoming fourth edition of the Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF2025) will be held in Algiers, Algeria, from 4th to 10th September 2025. This premier trade and investment event will host more than 2,000 exhibitors from across Africa and globally, showcasing goods and services while exploring trade opportunities. The fair is projected to generate over US$44 billion in trade and investment deals.

Themed Gateway to New Opportunities, the event will be hosted by the Government of Algeria and aims to leverage the potential of the AfCFTA’s single market of 1.4 billion people with a combined GDP of over US$3.5 trillion. Held biennially by Afreximbank, the IATF fosters intra-African trade, facilitates knowledge exchange, and strengthens the continent’s trade networks.

During the lecture, Prof. Oramah also underscored the role of the Fund for Export Development in Africa (FEDA), an impact-investing subsidiary of Afreximbank. FEDA addresses the multi-billion-dollar equity funding gap in Africa’s trade sector by providing equity, quasi-equity, and debt capital for transformative projects. Its investment strategy spans financial services, technology, agribusiness, manufacturing, and transport, alongside trade-enabling infrastructure such as industrial parks.

Reflecting on Afreximbank’s mission, Prof. Oramah emphasised innovative financing strategies and the bank’s commitment to empowering African entrepreneurs. He reiterated the importance of intra-African trade in unlocking the continent’s economic potential, leveraging Africa’s natural and human resources to drive sustainable growth.

The event was facilitated by Arunma Oteh, Chairperson of the Royal African Society and former World Bank Treasurer, and moderated by Omar Ben Yedder, Group Publisher of IC Publications. It provided a platform for strategic dialogues on Africa’s integration into global trade systems and the critical role of initiatives like the AfCFTA.