Business
Cote d’Ivoire Approves Afreximbank’s Office In Abidjan

L-R: Second Runner Up Winner, Japhter Obinna, representative of the Grand Winner, Mr Boyonle Ogunlana, and representative of the First Runner Up Winner, Miss Temitayo Jaiyesimi, displaying their dummy cheques, during presentation of Cbn e-payment Incentive Scheme (Epis) Raffle Cash Reward in Abuja recently
The African Export-Import
Bank (Afreximbank) says Côte d’Ivoire has formally presented the formal instrument of ratification to it for establishment of a branch office in Abidjan.
In a statement yesterday in Lagos, Afreximbank President, Dr Benedict Oramah, was quoted as saying the ratification gave full legal effect to the Branch Office Agreement.
Oramah described the office as a very important instrument for promoting intra-African trade and supporting the development of value-added exports from Africa.
According to him, Abidjan is the natural choice for the Branch Office because of the significant contribution made by Cote d’Ivoire toward the establishment of the bank.
Besides, he said the country was a major hub for regional and intra-African trade in the Francophone region.
Oramah said Cote d’Ivoire served as the headquarters of Francophone West Africa, adding that the country, more than any other country in Africa, had demonstrated that it could achieve development through plantation agriculture.
He said Cote d’Ivoire had successfully emerged as the world’s largest producer of cocoa and also had taken over as the world’s largest exporter of cashew nuts.
Ambassador of Cote d’Ivoire to Egypt, Eugène Allou Allou, who presented the instrument to Afreximbank, said the Ivorian authorities finalised the ratification process on June 3.
The Abidjan Branch Office was set up to handle the Bank’s marketing, business development, relationship management, loan structuring, loan monitoring and agency functions in the Francophone West Africa.
Afreximbank’s engagement in Cote d’Ivoire has included cumulative approvals of $2.518 billion since 1994 in support of transactions in the oil and gas, agriculture, financial services, transport and tourism infrastructure sectors.
Afreximbank has two other branch offices located in Abuja and Harare.