Nigeria has attracted cumulative record disbursements of about $52 billion from the African Export-Import bank (Afreximbank) in the last 10 years, making it the largest recipient of the bank’s trade and development finance.
Benedict Oramah, Afreximbank’s President said on Tuesday that this remarkable investment has bolstered key sectors such as energy, healthcare, and industrial development, positioning Nigeria as a major economic hub in Africa.
He spoke in Abuja during the signing ceremony of the host agreement between Nigeria and bank ahead of its 2025 annual general meeting scheduled to hold in Abuja in June.
Oramah said Nigeria is the first beneficiary of a number of Afreximbank’s flagship transformative projects, including the African Quality Assurance Centers (AQACs). One of the centres has commenced operations in Ogun state, while two others being developed in Kaduna and Imo states.
The bank is also building similar centres across Africa designed as laboratories to test, inspect, and certify products made in Africa.
AQACs aim to ensure that African products meet international standards and technical regulations, thereby enhancing their competitiveness in global markets and facilitating intra-African trade
Oramah said the bank is keen in ensuring development of quality infrastructure in Nigeria to enable the country participate effectively in international trade.
Afreximbank is also constructing an Africa Trade Centre in Abuja, scheduled to open on April 10. This marks the bank’s first of such facility on the continent, underscoring its commitment to enhancing trade infrastructure in Africa.
The facility comprises two towers that will accommodate a hotel, a conference center, a tech hub, exhibition facilities, and a trade information center.
The bank is also developing the African Medical Centre of Excellence (AMCE) in Abuja as part of a broader initiative to establish similar state-of-the-art medical facilities across Africa.
The AMCE Abuja is the first of about five such medical centers planned for the continent, aiming to provide advanced healthcare services and address critical gaps in medical infrastructure and expertise.
The new 500-bed medical facility, slated to open by June 2025, is poised to transform Nigeria’s capital into a major destination for medical tourism and is estimated at $750 million upon full development.
Investments linked to AMCE are projected to reach $1 billion, encompassing a range of allied projects.
These include a medical school developed in partnership with King’s College London and a research and training institute.
“African Medical Centre of Excellence will not only be a hospital, but a center of excellence for researching diseases that affect people of African descent,” Oramah stated.
Afreximbank, in collaboration with the African Petroleum Producers’ Organization (APPO), is driving the establishment of the African Energy Bank to be headquartered in Abuja.
This initiative aims to bridge Africa’s energy financing gap by supporting projects across oil, gas, and renewable energy sectors.
APPO is structured to play a pivotal role in enhancing energy access and growth on the continent with an initial capital of $5 billion, of which Afreximbank has already committed $1.25billion.
Read also: Afreximbank launches African research, innovation hub to boost trade
Afreximbank has further been actively involved in investments aimed at boosting refining capacity by up to 1.2 million barrels per day for Nigeria. This includes significant support for projects like the Dangote Refinery, the Port Harcourt Refinery, and ongoing developments at the BUA refinery.
This support, Oramah noted, is part of a broader strategy to establish the Gulf of Guinea as a major refining hub, reducing Africa’s dependence on petroleum imports.
In Nigeria, the bank has as well supported
7.5 million tonnes of urea fertiliser production, in Dangote, indorama and notore, placing the country as the number one urea producer in Africa.
During the peak of the polycrisis in 2022/2023, when many international banks reduced credit lines due to their decision to stop financing fuels, Afreximbank played a crucial role by financing approximately 70% of Nigeria’s total fuel imports. This significant support helped maintain national energy security during the challenging period.
Afreximbank is also working with Arise Integrated Industrial Platforms to develop a $300 million Special Economic Zone in Ogun State to be dedicated towards agro-processing activities.
The bank is providing significant support to Africa’s creative industry, which is the largest employer of African youth and women.
Nigeria plays a major role in this sector, benefiting from initiatives like the Creative Africa Nexus (CANEX) program and specific investments such as a $200 million facility to boost Nigeria’s creative industries.
Through lines of credit, capacity building initiatives and market access programmes, the bank is helping Nigeria’s creative industry to expand export of their content to other parts of the continent and beyond.
So far, Afreximbank has disbursed more than $140 billion into the continent and leveraged over $200 billion into Africa over the last decade.
This makes it one of the most significant financing supports by a Multilateral Financial Institution, to the continent.
Accordingto Oramah, “These investments are helping to close the financing gap created by the withdrawal of the international banks from supporting many African economies.
“The Bank’s interventions have also made what was once considered impossible a reality by transforming many African countries from commodity-dependent economies into major industrial hubs, realising significant value from abundant commodities, and creating the capacity of Africans to resolve their socio-economic development challenges.”
He said in the last ten years, Nigeria has remained a strong partner of the bank, with the government consistently responding positively to capital calls, injecting significant equity into the bank “even when the economic environment seemed challenging; removing regulatory hurdles that would otherwise inhibit the Bank’s business in Nigeria, and being at the forefront of rallying continental support for the Bank.”
“The unwavering support has been the primary driver of the Bank’s strong continental impact,” he stated.
Orama said the annual meetings to be organised under the theme “Building the Future on three decades of Resilience, will enable the bank reflect on its remarkable journey and impact in Africa over the last 32 years.
He raised concerns that as the global economy becomes increasingly fragmented, amid trade wars and protectionism, Afreximbank’s future is also threatened especially as it gains continental and global relevance.
He said matters on how Africa can navigate these uncharted paths, as well as the bank’s continued role in driving economic transformation in the years ahead will top discussions at the meetings projected to host over 5,000 participants.
He said the bank is confident of Nigeria’s capacity to host the meeting to be attended by partipants from Africa, the Caribbean and elsewhere under the umbrella of Global Africa.
“We expect the event, especially the opening ceremony on June 27, to bring together Heads of State, Heads of Regional Organisations from Africa and the Caribbean, as well as policymakers, academics, and business leaders across Africa and the Caribbean and the rest of the world,” Orama stated.
Wale Edun, Minister of Finance and coordinating minister of the economy commended Afreximbank as Nigeria’s trusted development partner and its huge role in helping government navigate funding challenges.
The 2025 Afreximbank Annual Meetings will serve as a poignant farewell event for Oramah, who is set to retire after a decade of distinguished service at the helm of the institution.
Edun noted that his tenure has been remarkable through significant contributions to African trade and economic development. He added that his leadership will be remembered as pivotal in shaping the bank’s strategic direction.
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