By Oko Drammeh
Togo is strongly committed to achieving an economically integrated Africa and to the deepening of intra-African trade, Togolese President Faure Gnassingbé said in Cairo today.
Speaking when he visited the Headquarters of the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), President Gnassingbé said that African countries must first seek to use resources available within the continent before looking elsewhere, adding that Afreximbank’s good performance had demonstrated that banks focusing on continental transactions and projects could become real success stories.
He pledged that Togo would take prompt action to complete the necessary steps to become a full member of the Bank in order to support the effort toward the economic integration of the continent. Afreximbank had proved itself as an effective institution at providing critical financing for African projects, he added.
Earlier, Dr. Benedict Oramah, President of Afreximbank, said that the Bank was pursuing Africa’s industrialization and intra-African trade because of the critical role they could play in moving the continent away from reliance on commodities and overdependence on others for development.
He said that, through its work, the Bank had made significant contributions to the economic development of its Member States and had financed projects in many parts of the continent, including Togo.
Urging Togo to move quickly to formalize its membership of the Bank, Dr. Oramah said that the country could play a leading role in trade in West Africa by serving as a hub for port activities and by taking advantage of its nearness to the Nigerian market.
He explained that by signing and ratifying the Afreximbank Establishment Agreement, Togo would become eligible to take advantage of the full range of trade finance programmes and facilities available through the Bank.
Responding to questions from the Togolese delegation, Dr. Oramah said that more than 85 per cent of Afreximbank’s loans went to the private sector and that the Bank leveraged international financing through its syndications programme in order to fund large-scale transactions and projects. It also supported African entrepreneurs by providing them with access to international markets.
President Gnassingbé was accompanied on the visit by a 10-member delegation, including Ninsao Gnofam, Minister Of Infrastructure and Transport; Col. Ouro Koura Agadazi, Minister of Agriculture; Bernadette E. Legzim-Balouki, Minister of Commerce, Industry and Promotion of the Private Sector and Tourism; Fiatuwo Kwadjo Sessenou, Minister of Urbanisation; Guy Madjé Lorenzo, Minister of Communication, Culture, Sports and Civic Training; Prof. Moustafa Mijiyawa, Minister of Health and Social Protection; and Mémounatou Ibrahima, Second Vice President of the National Assembly. Also joining them was the Egyptian Ambassador to Togo.
Fleu Tchibota
President Faure Gnassingbé of Togo (Left) in conversation with Afreximbank President Dr. Benedict Oramah during his visit to the Afreximbank Headquarters in Cairo
