Ghana and several other African countries are set to benefit from a $150 million fund aimed at reducing financial risks to support the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).This initiative extends to Senegal, Angola, and Botswana, which are outside the usual coverage of the Trade Development Bank (TDB). Other regions, including East, North, and Southern Africa, will also benefit.

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The funds will focus on key areas like agriculture, food security, energy, manufacturing, telecommunications, and other services.The African Development Bank (AfDB) and the Trade Development Bank made this possible by signing a partnership agreement during the 2024 Africa Investment Forum (AIF) in Rabat, Morocco, on December 6.

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Ahmed Rashad Attout, Director of the AfDB’s Financial Sector Development Department, described the agreement as a partnership to drive meaningful economic transactions.He explained that this fund is expected to generate about $1.8 billion in trade financing, helping businesses across Africa, including women-owned enterprises, access the resources they need to thrive.“It’s part of our implementation of the Africa Continental Free Trade Area.

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So, we see this as really the beginning of a much larger and wider relationship. We also expect that we’ll be expanding the range of products that we are able to support under this risk participation agreements,” said Mr Attout.

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Ms Wegoki Mugeni, Chief Operating Officer, East Africa, TDB, explained that the idea was for the two banks to share the financing risks and support, especially private sector companies focused on expanding their operations across Africa.

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She said the risk participation facility would assist key sectors that drove Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to deepen intra-African trade support the development of the continent and uplift the living standards of its people.“Going forward, the Bank will ensure that we continue to support financial institutions in low-income countries and expand the fiscal credit available to the private sector as well as other sectors in the region,” she said.

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