In a landmark move to deepen economic ties between Africa and the Caribbean, the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) hosted its inaugural regional roadshow in Kingston, Jamaica on June 2, underscoring the region’s rising priority in the bank’s global strategy for cross-continental trade, investment and collaborative development.
Branded under the theme “Empowering Jamaica’s Growth: Catalysing Trade, Investment and Industrialisation through Tailored Afreximbank Solutions”, the event comes on the heels of two major milestones in the bilateral relationship: Jamaica signed a formal partnership agreement with Afreximbank in July 2025, and the bank shortly after approved a $5 billion multi-country financing facility that allocates resources for Jamaica and other Caribbean nations.
The roadshow drew a diverse audience of stakeholders, including senior government officials, private sector leaders, and representatives from local and regional financial institutions. For Jamaican attendees, the gathering served as a hands-on opportunity to explore the full scope of Afreximbank’s offerings, from structured trade financing instruments and trade facilitation programs to targeted investment advisory services. For Afreximbank, the engagement provided invaluable on-the-ground insight into Jamaica’s core economic priorities, untapped investment openings, and specific financing needs to inform future tailored support.
Opening the event, Jamaica’s Minister of Finance and the Public Service, Hon. Fayval Williams, celebrated the deepening alliance between the Caribbean nation and the pan-African financial institution. She noted that for over 30 years, Afreximbank has built a proven track record of delivering transformative financing that boosts trade and drives inclusive growth across the African continent, and its expanding footprint in the Caribbean marks a new chapter of mutually beneficial collaboration. “I encourage all Jamaican institutions represented here today to deepen their engagement with Afreximbank so that, together, we can unlock greater opportunities for two-way trade and investment between Jamaica and Africa,” Williams said in her address.
Afreximbank leaders emphasized that Jamaica’s strategic geographic and economic position leaves it uniquely primed to capture outsized benefits from growing Africa-Caribbean trade and investment flows, particularly for initiatives focused on advancing industrial development and value-added production.
Eric Monchu Intong, Afreximbank’s Group Managing Director for Client Relations and Regional Office Operations, drew on the bank’s decades of experience supporting industrial infrastructure across Africa to frame Jamaica’s growth opportunity. Intong highlighted the bank’s extensive work financing industrial parks, special economic zones, and local manufacturing projects across 18 African nations, including a $450 million global credit facility in partnership with ARISE IIP that has scaled up industrial development across the continent.
“At Afreximbank, we believe that industrialisation is the foundation of sustainable trade and economic transformation. To trade successfully with Global Africa, we must first produce,” Intong said. “Through investments in industrial parks, special economic zones and local manufacturing, Jamaica has an opportunity to reduce import dependence, increase value-added exports, create jobs and strengthen its economic resilience. We believe these lessons and solutions can be adapted to support Jamaica’s industrial growth ambitions and unlock new opportunities for trade, investment and economic development.”
The Kingston roadshow forms a core component of Afreximbank’s broader Global Africa agenda, which centers on building robust, mutually beneficial commercial and financial linkages between African and Caribbean economies. The bank has reiterated its long-term commitment to expanding both intra-Caribbean trade and Africa-Caribbean trade by increasing local access to affordable financing, patient investment capital, and specialized industry advisory services.