Online Reporter
Business Reporter
Outgoing African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) president and chairman, Professor Benedict Okey Oramah, has stated that his decade-long strategy, which prioritised intra-African trade and investment, was born from a deep-seated conviction that it represents the “only viable path forward for Africa’s development and economic emancipation.”
Speaking at a farewell conference in Cairo on October 25, 2025, which drew over 2 000 guests including Heads of State and top business leaders, Prof Oramah used his address to reflect on his tenure, which ends this month.
Prof Oramah asserted that his governing philosophy was explicitly designed to counter historical external forces that have hindered the continent’s progress.
“Our philosophy was borne out of the conviction that the only viable path forward for Africa’s development and economic emancipation was one that would aggressively reverse-engineer the colonial strategy of ‘divide-and-rule’ and ‘divide-and-conquer’ that had, for decades, pinned Africa and people of African descent down in the dustbin of despair and desperation,” he told the dignitaries.
He further elaborated on the need for internal momentum, explaining that the continent’s developmental engine must be internally driven.
“Accordingly, our philosophy was that Africa’s development dynamo must be powered from within, as hundreds of years of history had shown us that external interests had been mostly predatory and parasitic, unless engaged from a position of strength and purpose,” he explained.
The outgoing president highlighted that the Bank’s multifaceted approach has led to “tangible differences.”
He pointed to “those things that now exist, those new institutional arrangements and interventions that have now joined as formidable forces in Africa’s armoury in its fight towards true self-determination – those things that we look up to today, many of which were mere hopes and aspirations, 10 years ago.”
His tenure, which began in September 2015, saw Afreximbank’s balance sheet and guarantees soar from US$6 billion to nearly US$44 billion. The Bank’s initiatives have been instrumental in advancing the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), notably by backing the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) with a US$3 billion facility, allowing cross-border trade in local currencies across 20 nations.
Dr. George Elombi, Afreximbank president designate, delivered a tribute, describing Prof Oramah as “one of the few in the world, the 0,8 percent, who combines vision and execution.”
He added that Prof Oramah had “turned decades and centuries-old political wishes into tangible gains for all Africans.”
The conference marked the end of a transformative era for Afreximbank, which, under Prof Oramah’s stewardship, has cemented its place as Africa’s foremost trade finance institution through numerous projects, including the Intra-African Trade Fair, the Africa Trade Gateway, and significant Covid-19 pandemic support.
dyton mupawaenda