(FEDA) - The Republic of Zimbabwe became the sixth signatory to the Establishment Agreement of the Fund for Export-Development in Africa (FEDA), the development impact-oriented subsidiary of African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank). The Agreement was recently signed by His Excellency Dr. Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa, President of the Republic of Zimbabwe.

This accession marks another significant step forward in Afreximbank’s efforts to mobilize its Member States to sign and ratify the Establishment Agreement of FEDA. It also demonstrates the growing support for FEDA as a new multilateral development platform. 

Following the announcement of its first close of US$ 670 million in September 2022, FEDA continues to build momentum for strategic interventions on the Continent. 

Professor Benedict Oramah, President and Board Chairman of the Board of Directors of Afreximbank and FEDA, said: “The accession to the FEDA Establishment Agreement by the Republic of Zimbabwe is an important step that will pave the way for the ratification of the Agreement in the coming months, thereby facilitating increased investment by FEDA  in Zimbabwe. FEDA's mandate is critical to African economies as it provides long term capital with a focus on industrialization, intra-African trade and value-added exports. We look forward to mobilizing other Afreximbank Member States in due time to support FEDA's pan-African expansion.”

Marlène Ngoyi, CEO of FEDA, said: “This promising development builds on FEDA’s track record of investing in companies operating in Zimbabwe that are strategically aligned in promoting industrialization, intra-African trade and value-added exports. The investments include a corporation in the TMT sector that provides vital digital infrastructure to support Africa’s connectivity and trade with the rest of the world. FEDA is committed to intervene further in the country in the near future.”

About FEDA: Headquartered in Kigali (Rwanda), the Fund for Export Development in Africa (“FEDA”) is the impact investment subsidiary of Afreximbank set up to provide equity, quasi-equity, and debt capital to finance the multi-billion-dollar funding gap (particularly in equity) needed to transform the Trade sector in Africa.

FEDA pursues a multi-sector investment strategy along the intra-African trade, value-added export development, and manufacturing value chain which includes financial services, technology, consumer and retail goods, manufacturing, transport & logistics, agribusiness, as well as ancillary trade enabling infrastructure such as industrial parks.

About Afreximbank: African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) is a Pan-African multilateral financial institution mandated to finance and promote intra-and extra-African trade. Afreximbank deploys innovative structures to deliver financing solutions that support the transformation of the structure of Africa’s trade, accelerating industrialization and intra-regional trade, thereby boosting economic expansion in Africa. A stalwart supporter of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), Afreximbank has launched a Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) that was adopted by the African Union (AU) as the payment and settlement platform to underpin the implementation of the AfCFTA. Afreximbank is working with the AU and the AfCFTA Secretariat to develop an Adjustment Facility to support countries in effectively participating in the AfCFTA. At the end of 2021, the Bank’s total assets and guarantees stood at about US$25 billion, and its shareholder funds amounted to US$4 billion. Afreximbank disbursed more than US$51 billion between 2016 and 2021. The Bank has ratings assigned by GCR (international scale) (A), Moody’s (Baa1), Japan Credit Rating Agency (JCR) (A-) and Fitch (BBB). The Bank is headquartered in Cairo, Egypt.