….expands lender’s continental reach to 54 nations
South Africa has formally joined the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), becoming the 54th country to accede to the institution’s establishment agreement and marking a significant expansion of the lender’s continental footprint.
The development comes a few days after global ratings agency Fitch withdrew its ratings on Afreximbank for commercial reasons, ending analytical coverage of the Cairo-based multilateral lender. Before the withdrawal, the bank had already discontinued its engagement with Fitch following a dispute.
In a statement on Wednesday, the trade finance institution said the country’s accession “marks the formal entry of one of Africa’s largest economies into the Bank’s membership, heralding deeper financial sovereignty.”
The bank noted that the move follows the South African Parliament’s approval of the accession in 2025, cementing what it described as a strategic partnership between the continent’s leading multilateral trade bank and its most industrialised economy.
“South Africa becomes the 54th state to accede to the Bank’s Establishment Agreement, constituting a historic milestone as the two partners seek to unlock trade opportunities within a global financial architecture that is rapidly fragmenting due to protectionist policies and shifting trade blocs,” the statement added.
Africa’s biggest economy’s full membership comes more than three decades after Afreximbank was founded in 1993. The country was unable to join at the time due to international restrictions linked to the apartheid era.
$8bilion country programme
To operationalise the partnership, the lender plans to roll out major financial interventions, including an $8 billion country programme aimed at deepening South Africa’s economic development.
The initiatives are designed to expand the bank’s developmental impact, strengthen industrial capacity and regional supply chains, and boost intra-African trade and investment flows in alignment with the country’s economic priorities.
South Africa is currently the continent’s largest contributor to intra-African trade, accounting for 19.1 percent of total volumes in 2024. Afreximbank said the country is well-positioned to leverage its financing tools, trade infrastructure, and continental network to expand exports across Africa.
George Elombi, Afreximbank’s president and chairman, described the accession as a decisive step toward advancing shared African economic interests. He said the $8 billion programme—developed with South Africa’s Department of Trade, Industry and Competition—aligns with the country’s National Development Plan 2030 and targets sectors critical to long-term growth.
Elombi added that Afreximbank’s current project pipeline in South Africa exceeds $6 billion, spanning healthcare, financial services, manufacturing, energy, mining, and industrial development.
Boost to integration, industrialisation
President Cyril Ramaphosa said the accession represents a milestone in Africa’s economic integration and reaffirms South Africa’s commitment to continental industrialisation, trade expansion, and investment.
He noted that the country programme will initially support strategic projects across trade and industrial clusters, including funding for its Transformation Fund aimed at supporting black-owned businesses historically excluded from the economy.
Ramaphosa added that Afreximbank’s three-decade record of resilience and innovation positions it as a key partner in strengthening exporters, industrial projects, and regional value chains while advancing Africa’s broader development agenda.
Under the partnership, South Africa and Afreximbank will jointly pursue initiatives including trade and investment promotion programmes, guarantee schemes, financing for industrial parks and special economic zones, export trading support, project and asset-based finance, conventional trade finance, and targeted funding for creative and cultural industries, alongside advisory services.
