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Afreximbank Executive Vice President Dr. Benedict
Oramah making a presentation at the symposium and academy on Factoring in
Africa
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The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) provided lines of credit
amounting to $48 million to African factoring companies in the last two years
to give them liquidity and payment risk protection in their factoring
activities, Dr Benedict Oramah, Executive Vice President of the Bank in
charge of Business Development and Corporate Banking, has said.
Speaking in Cairo during a two-day symposium and academy on Factoring in
Africa, Dr. Oramah said that the amount comprised $23 million granted to
factors located in Mauritania and $25 million to several others based in
Senegal.
He announced that Afreximbank currently had factoring lines totalling
$50 million under assessment for institutions in Burkina Faso, Kenya, Egypt,
Botswana, Rwanda, and Zimbabwe.
Dr. Oramah said that Afreximbank was supporting the development of
factoring in Africa through the organisation of awareness raising activities,
including educational events, and through the fostering of the creation of
facilitative infrastructure.
To help reduce costs incurred by African factors in setting up factoring
business platforms and to address challenges around the lack of expertise in
back-office and receivables management, Afreximbank was working to introduce a
co-branded factoring development product called AfriFactor, he stated.
According to him, AfriFactor will provide advisory services to African
financial institutions seeking to commence or enhance their factoring
businesses and would provide support in such areas as establishing factoring
businesses, information technology and operations platforms.
Afreximbank is also working with the African Development Bank’s Thematic
Fund for Private Sector Assistance (FAPA) to support factoring companies in
Africa, using FAPA grants that target innovative programmes for small and
micro-scale enterprises, he continued. According to him, a grant has already
been pre-approved for technical capacity building, drafting of a model law, and
for advocacy, including training, workshops and conferences.
Dr. Oramah said that Afreximbank had organised seminars, trainings and
workshops across Africa, targeting bank officials, law makers and regulators,
to encourage interest in factoring as an alternative trade finance instrument
for companies.
The symposium and academy on Factoring in Africa is being organised by
the Egyptian Factoring Association, the Financial Services Institute and the
International Factors Group.
Manal Mounir Hendy
Associate
External Communications
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