The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) is ramping up efforts to turn the African Continental Free Trade Area (African Continental Free Trade Area) from policy into real commercial action, introducing a new wave of trade-enabling instruments aimed at boosting cross-border business across the continent. According to Dr. Gainmore Zanamwe, Director of Trade Facilitation and Investment Promotion at the bank, the focus has now shifted from ratification to execution.
At the centre of this push is the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS), a platform already backed by 21 central banks and integrated with over 170 commercial banks. The system is gradually changing how African trade is financed by enabling payments in local currencies, reducing dependence on external currencies and cutting transaction costs. Ghana and Nigeria are already using the system for bilateral trade, with projected savings of about $5 billion annually.
To further ease the movement of goods, Afreximbank is also rolling out a $1 billion African Collaborative Transit Guarantee Scheme designed to remove delays at borders and simplify customs procedures. The initiative will allow cargo to move across multiple countries under a single digital transit bond. Pilots have already been conducted in COMESA and the East African Community (EAC), where over $185 million in bonds have been issued, with a full digital rollout expected by 2027.
In addition, Afreximbank is partnering with ARISE Integrated Industrial Platforms and the AfCFTA Secretariat to establish a new export trading company aimed at helping small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and smallholder farmers access international markets. The model is designed to aggregate local production, handle branding and logistics, and connect goods to industrial value chains, addressing long-standing challenges that prevent small businesses from exporting directly.
Dr. Zanamwe noted that many MSMEs are not fully export-ready due to regulatory and operational barriers, but can still participate in global trade indirectly through structured aggregation systems. He highlighted examples such as Malawian rice, which could meet strong demand in markets like Nigeria if properly coordinated. The initiative, he said, is not intended to replace private traders but to strengthen Africa’s trade ecosystem under the AfCFTA framework.
source: The Guardian