Managing Director for Trade Finance and Correspondent Banking at Afreximbank, Ms. Gwen Mwaba, has called for stronger trade finance capabilities and deeper collaboration among African financial institutions to accelerate inclusive and sustainable growth across the continent.
Speaking at the opening of the 25th Afreximbank Trade Finance Seminar (ATFS) in Abidjan, Ms. Mwaba said, “Africa is richly endowed with natural resources such as minerals, hydrocarbons, agricultural commodities, and a growing array of value-added opportunities across energy, metals, and logistics. These resources present immense potential for development when they are financed responsibly, efficiently, and with rigorous risk management. To translate this potential into tangible outcomes, we need banks and financial institutions that are not only risk-aware but structurally proficient.”
She emphasized the pivotal role of skilled financial professionals in shaping Africa’s trade future and the importance of capacity building in translating Africa’s abundant natural and human resources into tangible economic development.
“Well-trained bankers with sophisticated deal-structuring capabilities can tailor financing to capital-intensive value chains and align project finance with local development needs and environmental safeguards,” said Ms. Mwaba.
“Trade finance built on trust, risk assessment, and liquidity remains the lifeblood of commerce, investment, and job creation. Our collective task is to ensure that this lifeblood flows reliably to the firms that need it and that its benefits are broadly shared.”
The opening ceremony was attended by representatives from the Government of Côte d’Ivoire, including Mr. Patrick Olivier Daipo, Deputy Director of Cabinet at the Ministry of Trade, Mr. Chalouho Coulibaly, National Director of the Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO), representing Governor Dr. Jean-Claude Kassi Brou; and Mr. Jérôme Ahua, Deputy Managing Director of BNI Bank, who represented the Bankers Association.
Now in its 25th year, the Afreximbank Trade Finance Seminar is the Bank’s flagship capacity-building programme, which has trained thousands of African bankers, financiers, and policymakers since its inception. This year’s edition marks a major milestone, a quarter-century of empowering African financial professionals and deepening the continent’s expertise in structuring and delivering trade finance solutions.
Highlighting Afreximbank’s leadership in Africa’s trade finance ecosystem, Ms. Mwaba noted that over more than three decades, the Bank has built a portfolio of programmes supporting regional integration, value addition, and job creation. These include large-scale financing for export-oriented sectors and infrastructure, innovative risk-sharing and credit enhancement tools to mobilize private capital, specialized facilities for commodity and project finance, and targeted capacity-building programmes for African bankers and policymakers.
The three-day seminar will explore key themes shaping the future of trade finance in Africa, including digitalization, data and transparency, robust risk management amid global volatility, and collaboration among banks, fintechs, exporters, and multilateral institutions to develop scalable and sustainable solutions.
Concluding her address, Ms. Mwaba expressed optimism that the discussions in Abidjan would lead to “tangible outcomes and further strengthen Africa’s trade finance ecosystem.”
The Afreximbank Trade Finance Seminar runs from November 4–6, 2025, in Abidjan under the theme “Strengthening Trade Finance Capabilities for Inclusive and Sustainable Growth in Africa”, followed by a one-day Factoring Workshop on November 7, 2025.
