The ManicaPost
Levi Mukarati in ACCRA, Ghana
PRESIDENT Mnangagwa is today (Sunday) expected to depart Harare for Ghana where he will join continental and Caribbean leaders for the 30th African Export Import Bank (Afreximbank) meetings.
The President’s participation symbolises Zimbabwe’s strong support for the multilateral financial institution that has since been granted land in Harare to construct a state-of-the-art multi-million dollar regional centre.
The project, to house various support services including a trade data centre, technology incubation hub and hotel, is one of the second republic’s key milestones to stimulate investments and infrastructure development.
The structure comes as President Mnangagwa, three months ago, signed an establishment agreement for the Fund for Export Development in Africa, a subsidiary of the Afreximbank focusing on the continent’s growth.
In Ghana, the President is pencilled to attend a series of meetings focusing on initiatives to further propel trade and socio economic development among African/Caribbean nations.
According to a statement by Afreximbank: “Ghana President Nana Akufo Addo will lead a set of high profile leaders including heads of state and government, former heads of state, business leaders, African trade practitioners and trade finance experts scheduled to address participants at the meetings.”
Some of the notable figures drawn from other sectors include former African Development Bank President Dr Donald Kaberuka, secretary general of the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) secretariat Wamkele Mene and African Union Commission commissioner for economic development trade, industry and minerals ambassador Albert Muchanga.
The meetings also draw participation from top African businesspeople including Dangote Group chair Aliko Dangote, Eleswedy Electric of Egypt president Ahmed El Sewedy, Econet Global and Cassava Technologies founder Strive Masiyiwa and Whitaker Group President Adam Molai.
“Some of the topics listed for discussion include turbo charging implementation of the Africa Continental Free Trade Agreement; Building prosperity for Africans; challenges for peace and security; overcoming challenges of food security for sustainable development in Africa; African culture and literature as a foundation for continental renaissance and the future for integration in Africa,” added the statement from Afreximbank.
The meetings also celebrate three decades since the bank launched a bold initiative in pursuit of financing and advising African/Caribbean nations on development
They come at a time Afreximbank has launched a bid to support a Pan African Payment and Settlement System, after its adoption by the African Union as an alternative transacting mode to the united states dollar, to underpin implementation AfCFTA.
The meetings which are ranked amongst most important gatherings of economic decision makers in Africa come as Africans are pushing for home grown solutions to problems faced by the continent.
Afreximbank is a multilateral financial institution mandated to finance intra-and-extra African trade in a bid to accelerate the continents industrialisation drive.
The bank has disbursed nearly $90 billion united states dollars between 2016 and 2022 to support trade and development in Africa.
The 30th annual meetings, which end on Wednesday this week are being held under the theme: Delivering the vision. Building prosperity for Africans
