The OPEC Fund for International Development (OPEC Fund) has signed a US$80 million term loan agreement with the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) to finance international trade activities directly among corporates or through financial intermediaries.
The OPEC Fund is stated to assist in boosting Afreximbank’s liquidity to grow its loan portfolio as it finances exports and imports in critical sectors across Africa such as agriculture, manufacturing, and healthcare. The African continent is still facing challenges in accessing trade finance when compared to other parts of the world. The OPEC Fund’s loan will help address some of these challenges, which are also impacted by the COVID 19 pandemic.
The OPEC Fund’s Director-General, Abdulhamid Alkhalifa said: “As a catalyst for economic development and growth, international trade is key to support Africa’s post-COVID-19 recovery. We are pleased to cooperate with Afreximbank and to support their key initiative to make trade finance more accessible to African counterparties across the continent by reducing liquidity constraints.”
Afreximbank is a pan-African multilateral financial institution mandated to finance and promote intra-and extra-African trade. The bank deploys innovative structures to deliver financing solutions that support the transformation of the structure of Africa’s trade, accelerating industrialization and intra-regional trade, thereby boosting economic expansion in Africa.
