…… To save Africa US$300 million annually in transit costs
The African Export-Import Bank (AFREXIMBANK) has launched the African Collaborative Transit Guarantee Scheme (AATGS) to promote movement of goods and services across multiple national borders in Africa. The ultimate objective of the scheme is to improve efficiency and shorten border clearance time, thereby boosting intra African trade which currently stands at 17 per cent.
The AATGS was launched in Cairo, Egypt, on Sunday by the President of Afreximbank, Prof. Benedict Oramah, at the on-going Intra-Africa Trade Fair (IATF) 2023. Speaking during the launch, Oramah said the AATGS is a realisation of the aspirations of Africa’s foreleaders about six decades ago at the inaugural meeting of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU).
He further stated that “AATGS signifies a monumental achievement in our journey towards continental integration and economic prosperity, and a bold step towards improving the competitiveness of cross-border trade as we announce the historic issuance of the first-ever multi-border transit bond in the continent and the signing of other facilities that will revolutionise transit of goods in Africa forever”.
He added that the US$1 billion AAGTS is expected to accelerate cross-border trade in Africa and save the continent about US$300 million annually in transit costs, pointing out that Afreximbank is able to provide capacity to national sureties to enable them to issue bonds at affordable rates and facilitate intra-African trade under the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA).