ALGIERS, Algeria —The head of the Africa Export-Import Bank’s (Afreximbank) in the Caribbean, Okechukwu Ihejirika, says the Egypt-based financial institution is pleased that Caribbean countries are taking advantage of the opportunities presented by the Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF2025) taking place here through Wednesday.
“When we are conceiving the intra-African Trade Fair, we didn’t say ‘intra-Africa’. So we say ‘intra-African’ emphasis on the ‘n’. It means Africans. And Africans are Africans, no matter which part of the world they are,” Ihejirika told the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC) at the fair.
“So it means that right from inception, the Caribbean, global African diasporans, were part of the engagement” said Ihejirika, who is the acting chief of operations at Afreximbank’s CARICOM office in Bridgetown, Barbados, the bank’s only regional office outside of Africa.
“And if you step back a bit, you’ll see that Africa and the Caribbean have now been trading a lot more with each other,” he told CMC.
“We believe that through the connection and through this platform and the opportunities that it presents, we should be able to see what we can trade among ourselves and then take advantage of that,” he said, referring to IATF2025.
The African Union (AU) has declared Africa’s diaspora, which includes the Caribbean and black peoples all over the world, as its sixth region.
Ihejirika noted that the diaspora day included conversations around opportunities between Africa and the Caribbean, adding, “and what we expect is that the feedback is going to filter into the system.
“It’s going to generate a lot more interest. Of course, that’s how these things expand. When you go you see something, you go back home, you talk about that,” he said.
“And that’s why we’re also counting on you, the press, to help us say things as it is. Don’t sugarcoat it. Say it as you’ve seen it. This is a platform that is indeed living up to its billing, bringing people together and also connecting those who have one or two things to offer.”
The fair is being held under the theme “Gateway to New Opportunities” and showcases products and services produced in Africa, from food to clothing, to cars and heavy-duty vehicles, such as combine harvesters.
IATF2025 features 2,000 exhibitors and has attracted more than 35,000 visitors from more than 140 countries. It is projected to facilitate trade and investment deals worth over US$44 billion and the virtual platform is connecting exhibitors and visitors throughout the year.
Ihejirika noted the physical presence of the three Caribbean heads of government at the Global African Diaspora Day – Barbados Prime Minister, Mia Mottley, Prime Minister Dr. Terrance Drew of St. Kitts and Nevis and Grenada’s head of government, Dickon Mitchell.
He said that another head of state was represented at the ministerial level.
“So, that shows endorsement at the governmental level. And the fact that we have also been able to introduce the diaspora day means that the trade fair has been positioned as an initiative and a platform, not just for Africa, for Africans and the continent alone, but also for Africans in diaspora,” Ihejirika told CMC.
He said that with the fair, Global Africa has “an opportunity where we allow conversations from Africans in diaspora to tell us what their priorities are and how we can all collaborate together” and that there was a lot of adoption from the Caribbean.
“We’ve seen a lot of Caribbean entities here who are here to meet with African institutions, and who are also, by the way, exhibiting,” he said, noting that there were some Caribbean exhibitors at the trade fair and that IATF includes a creative angle.
“I’m also happy that we’ve seen quite a lot of the diaspora, and especially from the from Caribbean, who are also there for the creative side, and which creates a platform for us to showcase what we can do together, how we can tell our story together, because we’re one people, and it can only get better from there.”
As regards the industries showing interest in the fair, Ihejirika said that the tourism sector has huge potential.
“So we’ve seen a lot of players in that space coming in to tell their African colleagues, what is there for them to gain in the tourism space.
“And we’ve also seen activities on the industrialisation side, where people are looking to see what they can acquire from here, as well as in the agribusiness side,” Ihejirika told CMC.
He said this was important, especially as many of the conversations at the level of the Caribbean Community centre around food security for the region.
“Then that gives me great, great pleasure to see conversations happening on the agribusiness where people are seeking solutions on how Africans have been able to navigate through those kinds of situations, to see how they can also bring the same level of effort into helping the Caribbean also become food secure.”
Ihejirika told CMC that IATF2025 is inherently successful in that it provides a platform for integration.
“So I want to say that at Afreximbank, we’re not just an institution that provides financing, but we also create that enabling environment for facilitation, for people to interact, because, of course, for business to thrive, it means that they have to be a meeting point.”
He said that Africa and the Caribbean had been kept about, with neither region interacting with the other.
“So what we’ve done now is to create a platform, leverage on Afreximbank’s strong convening power to bring players from both sides. And I would say, it’s yielding result, and particularly when we roll back to the fact that just a couple of weeks back that we’re all in St George’s Grenada, doing the same thing,” he said, referring to the Fourth Annual AfriCaribbean Trade and Investment Forum (ACTIF2025), held in St. George’s July 28-29.
“Then you also see that the fact that people who were in Grenada are also coming back here in Algiers, shows that that movement is really gathering the needed attention, and that’s something that encourages us at Afreximbank.”
Ihejirika said Afreximbank is proud to be able to put together such a platform, noting the number of exhibitors and visitors.
“There has never been any such platform dedicated more to Africans, Caribbeans, showcasing what they have on offer,” he said, noting that this is the case although the information about trade favours the regions’ traditional trading partners.
“So this trade fair is ticking all the boxes in making sure that that vital information, where people know what can be available, even they have sometimes we find out that at the cheaper rate, the next door is on showcase”.
Ihejirika told CMC a major success of IATF has Afreximbank putting together over US$600 million guarantee after the 2018 event to support financing a dam in Tanzania.
“… I’m happy that that project has been completed, generating over 200 megawatts into the system in Tanzania. And of course, this is clean energy, by the way.
Regarding the challenges to trade between Africa and the Caribbean, particularly connectivity, Ihejirika said Afreximbank acknowledges these challenges.
“These challenges exist, but we’re no longer are dwelling on them, which used to be the case to say, ‘Oh, there are problems — the Caribbean is small. Africa is far.’
“… So we’re no longer looking at it from that perspective, but we’re now looking at it from a positive angle to say, ‘How do we navigate through this challenge?’”
He said the first question was, ‘How do you have an African institution coming and invest in the Caribbean?
“Afreximbank has answered that. And behind us, we’ve seen quite a lot of African companies coming in to do deals in Grenada, in Trinidad and Tobago, even in Guyana,” he said making reference to the Afreximbank office in Barbados and the trade fairs held in the Caribbean.
“So we’ve seen that happen, and that’s practical now. So that route has been created.
“The next question is, how do we make sure that we don’t need to transit anywhere for us to come,” Ihejirika said, adding that the distance between the Caribbean and Africa is short.
“So what we see is that conversations are also happening in earnest to try and find a solution to that nagging problem. And I’m optimistic that in no distant time, that solution will come,” he told CMC. (CMC)
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