By 
The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has appointed, Dr. George Elombi, as its new President and Chairman of the Board of Directors, effective September 2025.
The announcement was made during the Bank’s 32nd Annual General Meeting held in Abuja, Nigeria, on June 28, 2025.
Elombi, a Cameroonian national, will become the fourth President of Afreximbank, succeeding Professor Benedict Oramah, who has served in the role since 2015.
Elombi has been with Afreximbank since 1996, rising from Legal Officer to Executive Vice President for Governance, Legal and Corporate Services.
He has played a pivotal role in shaping the Bank’s institutional structure, establishing key subsidiaries, and leading its emergency response during the COVID-19 pandemic, which mobilised over US$2 billion for vaccine deployment across Africa and the Caribbean.
Under his leadership, the Bank’s equity mobilisation efforts brought in US$3.6 billion in ordinary equity as of April 2025.
Accepting the appointment, Elombi pledged to continue building on Afreximbank’s mandate to industrialise Africa and restore dignity to Africans globally.
He also backed the target set by his predecessor to transform Afreximbank into a US$250 billion institution over the next decade.
Elombi holds a Ph.D. and an LL.M. in commercial arbitration from the London School of Economics and a Maitrise-en-Droit from the University of Yaoundé.
His appointment followed a global recruitment process launched in January 2025, including interviews conducted by an international executive search firm.
The Afreximbank Charter mandates that the President is appointed by shareholders upon the recommendation of the Board of Directors, for a renewable five-year term.
On Friday, Professor Benedict Oramah, ended his 10-year tenure as President of the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), highlighting a decade of rapid growth, financial innovation, and crisis intervention that saw the bank invest over US$155 billion across Africa and the Caribbean.
Delivering his final address during the 32nd Annual Meetings of Afreximbank in Abuja, Oramah described his presidency as a period of “unwavering commitment” and “bold African solutions,” positioning the bank as a critical development finance institution amid global uncertainty.
“I stand before you most pleased and fulfilled that I kept my promises,” Oramah said.
He stated that: “Together, we have built a resilient and impactful institution.”
Oramah, who assumed office in June 2015 in Lusaka, Zambia, noted that under his leadership, Afreximbank’s total assets and guarantees rose from $5 billion to $43.5 billion, while annual revenue grew sevenfold to $3.24 billion.
Net income increased from $125 million to $1 billion, with shareholders’ funds reaching $7.5 billion as of April 2025.
The outgoing president detailed the bank’s interventions during major crises, including disbursements of $10 billion during the 2015–16 commodity shock, $8 billion during the COVID-19 pandemic, and $50 billion in response to the Ukraine crisis.
He said the bank facilitated Africa’s first pooled vaccine procurement using a $2 billion facility, enabling 400 million Johnson & Johnson doses to be secured.
The bank also supported African and Caribbean nations through platforms like the African Medical Supplies Platform (AMSP).
Afreximbank supported major infrastructure and industrialisation projects, including over $4 billion to Nigeria’s Dangote Refinery, which Oramah said is now helping to cut fuel imports by up to $12 billion annually.
The bank also arranged a $2.9 billion credit facility for Tanzania’s Rufiji Hydropower project and provided a $750 million loan to Ghana to enable debt restructuring and unlock IMF support.
In Nigeria, Afreximbank is constructing a 2,000-hectare Special Agro-Industrial Zone, and plans are underway for a large-scale textile manufacturing hub expected to employ 250,000 people and save $4.7 billion in import costs.
Oramah said the bank significantly expanded support for the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), increasing intra-African trade finance from 3% to 32% of its total loan book.
He cited the success of the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS), operational in 16 countries and supported by a $3 billion clearing fund, enabling real-time local currency transactions and saving an estimated $5 billion annually in currency conversion losses.
Afreximbank also launched the Africa Collaborative Transit Guarantee Scheme, which allows goods to move across borders under a single bond, reducing delays and costs for regional trade.
The bank further harmonised 486 product standards through collaboration with the African Organisation for Standardisation (ARSO) and launched the Africa Quality Assurance Centre in Nigeria, with others underway in Chad, Benin, Kenya, and Zimbabwe.
Under Oramah, Afreximbank expanded its mandate to the Caribbean, admitting 12 CARICOM states as partner members, establishing a regional office in Barbados, and launching the AfriCaribbean Trade and Investment Forum (ACTIF).
The bank has disbursed millions of dollars in financing to The Bahamas, Barbados, Grenada, Guyana, and St. Lucia, and is arranging $1.6 billion for Suriname’s state oil company, as well as a $1 billion Local Content Support Facility in Guyana.
Afreximbank launched the African Medical Centre of Excellence (AMCE) in Abuja in partnership with King’s College London, investing $300 million in quaternary care and research. A $75 million grant-supported Life Sciences Foundation is also being established.
In 2023, shareholders approved the creation of a Concessional Finance Window, with a planned capitalisation of $5 billion, to address financing gaps in the wake of reduced development assistance.
The bank also committed $2 billion to Africa’s creative industries and supported digital innovations such as the African Trade Gateway, a suite of AI-powered platforms to close trade information gaps.
Oramah expressed confidence that Afreximbank’s total assets could reach $250 billion within the next decade if the current trajectory is maintained.
“Africa must define its own best practices. Institutions like Afreximbank must be bold and innovative, deploying capital owned and controlled by Africans to support development,” he said.
WARNING! All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express permission from ZAMBIA MONITOR.
Comments