The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) and the International Trade Centre (ITC) have renewed and expanded their memorandum of understanding (MoU) to strengthen intra-African trade, enhance small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) competitiveness, and deepen South-South cooperation.
The agreement was signed during the Intra-African Trade Fair 2025 (IATF2025) by Prof. Benedict Oramah, President and Chairman of the Board of Afreximbank, and Ms. Pamela Coke-Hamilton, Executive Director of ITC.
Under the renewed deal, the two institutions will work together on SME competitiveness, capacity building related to the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), expanding sustainable livelihoods through creative industries, fostering Africa’s trade ties with the Caribbean and Arab regions, and increasing access to finance for businesses, particularly small firms.
Commenting on the signing, Prof. Oramah said the collaboration would advance Africa’s creative industries, deepen South-South partnerships, and enhance AfCFTA’s impact on the private sector.
“The signing of the renewed MoU on the sidelines of IATF2025 is a strong demonstration of Afreximbank’s leadership in driving intra-African trade and SME empowerment,” he said. “By choosing IATF2025 as the platform for this announcement, Afreximbank and ITC are underlining the important role of the IATF as a platform for unlocking the potential of SMEs to drive Africa’s trade led development.”
He added that the partnership positioned Afreximbank and ITC “as joint leaders in ensuring that Africa’s SMEs and creative entrepreneurs gain global visibility and market access,” stressing that the institutions were scaling up collaboration to empower SMEs and creative industries, foster Africa-Caribbean linkages, and accelerate AfCFTA implementation.
Ms. Coke-Hamilton highlighted the broader benefits of the expanded agreement.
“Our long-term partnership with Afreximbank is one built on strengthening the way Africa engages with the rest of the world in terms of trade,” she said. “With our expanded partnership, we will continue to work together to make trade easier, more accessible and less costly across the continent, for all African businesses, including the smallest and those led by women and youth.”
IATF2025, held from 4 to 10 September, attracted more than 112,000 visitors from 132 countries and hosted 2,148 exhibitors. The continental exposition closed with trade and investment deals valued at US$48.3 billion signed over the course of the seven-day event.
