Afreximbank senior economic adviser to the president Richman Dzene, global head, communication & events director Anne Ezeh, president and chairman of the coard of directors, Dr. George Elombi, director, regional operations, Anglophone West Africa Kudakwashe Matereke and senior manager, banking legal services at the Afreximbank African Trade Centre, Alex Bebe Epale, during the Afreximbank mid-year media briefing/ HANDOUT
Africa's economic sovereignty will only be achieved when the continent industrialises at scale, processes its own resources and secures fair access to capital to finance its development priorities on its own terms, the African Export-Import Bank now says.
Kenya’s President William Ruto is among African leaders pushing for local processing and value addition on the country's and the continent’s minerals, in a move to cut exports of raw minerals which have for years denied African countries full benefits of their resources.
This, as he also pushes for industrial growth in the country in a bid to create jobs and grow the economy while increasing exports and reducing imports.
African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) president and chairman of the board of directors, George Elombi, now says Africa could no longer rely on a development model built around extraction and export of raw materials and importing finished goods.
Speaking during a media briefing in Abuja, Nigeria, he said the continent’s next phase of growth must be driven by value addition, manufacturing, regional trade and stronger African financial institutions capable of strong domestic capital and resource mobilisation for transformation.
“Africa’s sovereignty will not be secured by exporting more of what we do not process. It will be secured when we build the industries that turn African resources into African value. But industrialisation requires capital, and that capital must be accessible on terms that are fair, evidence-based and reflective of Africa’s true potential,” Dr Elombi said.
He said Afreximbank’s mandate is focused on helping the continent make that transition, from commodity dependence to industrial capacity, from fragmented markets to integrated trade, and from external vulnerability to greater African resilience.
Directly through debt financing and indirectly through its equity vehicle, the Fund for Export Development in Africa (FEDA), and in partnership with industrial partners such as ARISE IIP, Afreximbank is facilitating the development of multipurpose industrial parks and special economic zones.
There is also a dedicated effort in supporting mineral processing, agro-processing, automotive, textiles and pharmaceuticals.
The bank is scaling these strategic investments with the view to build competitive manufacturing hubs and deepen regional production linkages across the continent.
Elombi said that if Africa is to industrialise, the continent must also address the cost and availability of capital.
Credit ratings, he noted, influence how much institutions pay to raise funding, the investors they can access and ultimately, the cost at which they can finance trade, infrastructure and industry.
“Fair credit assessment is part of Africa’s sovereignty agenda,” he said, adding that “when African institutions are assessed properly, they can raise capital more competitively. When they raise capital more competitively, they can finance Africa’s industrial growth, and accelerate African trade and job creation.”
Afreximbank’s recent investment-grade rating from S&P Global Ratings, which assigned the Bank a BBB+ long-term and A-2 short-term issuer credit rating, showed the importance of assessing African institutions in their proper context.
S&P’s assessment comes after Afreximbank’s strong Q1 2026 performance, with total assets and contingencies rising to $49.4 billion (Sh6.4 trillion), shareholders’ funds of $8.6 billion (Sh 1.1 trillion), a capital adequacy ratio of 23 per cent and a non-performing loan ratio of 2.40 per cent.
Elombi said rating agencies must properly recognise Afreximbank’s treaty-based structure, Preferred Creditor Status, shareholder support and central role in financing African trade.
He added that shareholders’ perception of the bank is driven by their conviction and belief in the institution they created and not just by rating perceptions.
African multilateral institutions, he noted, should be assessed on verified evidence, their real institutional structures and the development role they play across the continent.
