More than 300 exporting companies gathered in Casablanca on April 14 for a high-level summit dedicated to unlocking the financing potential of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), underscoring the growing recognition that access to capital is as important as the trade agreement itself.
The AfCFTA Trade Finance Summit was co-organised by the Moroccan Confederation of Exporters (ASMEX) and the Africa Development Club (CAD) of Attijariwafa Bank, and was presided over by Mohamed El Kettani, Chief Executive of Attijariwafa Bank, with the participation of Omar Hejira, Secretary of State for Foreign Trade, and Karim Zidane, Minister of Investment.
El Kettani framed the significance of the moment, describing the AfCFTA as the largest regional free trade area in the world, covering 54 African Union member states and a market of nearly 1.3 billion people. “It is now time to focus on the challenges that still slow the full realisation of its potential, particularly those linked to trade and investment financing,” he said.
Cynthia Gnassingbe Essonam, Director for Private Sector Engagement at the AfCFTA Secretariat, provided an update on the state of implementation of the continental pact and emphasised the importance of private-sector participation in driving its success, particularly at a time when the global economy faces mounting pressures from supply chain disruptions, protectionism and economic fragmentation.
Gnassingbe Essonam noted that while momentum had been building for nearly two years, significant work remained. “The results are beginning to materialise, but there is still a great deal to accomplish. We need to better coordinate our efforts with the public sector to facilitate trade flows and reduce non-tariff barriers, which act as an invisible tax,” she said.
A first high-level panel examined the strategic financing framework of the AfCFTA, with contributions from the banking supervision directorate of Bank Al-Maghrib and Attijariwafa Bank, focusing on regulatory frameworks and the banking oversight required to support seamless cross-border transactions. A second panel presented new mechanisms for securing investments and exports, including credit insurance tools and reinsurance solutions.
The African Development Bank (AfDB) was also represented at the summit, with AfDB Morocco Director Achraf Tarsim underscoring the central role of financial institutions in supporting Moroccan exports and investments across the continent.
Three partnership agreements were signed at the close of the summit. Attijariwafa Bank signed separate accords with the Secretariat of State for Foreign Trade, with Maroc PME, and with ASMEX, all aimed at providing tailored financial and operational support to Moroccan companies seeking to expand across African markets, with a particular focus on small and medium-sized enterprises.
Saloua Karkri Belkeziz, representing ASMEX, said the AfCFTA was no longer a distant ambition but a reality in motion. For Moroccan exporters, she said, the African region now represented a priority growth driver, particularly in a global environment where geographic proximity was proving itself an increasingly powerful competitive advantage.
The Casablanca summit adds to a growing series of continental gatherings pressing for the operationalisation of AfCFTA commitments. NewsGhana has previously reported that Africa’s trade finance gap remains above 100 billion US dollars annually, with smaller businesses disproportionately shut out of cross-border commerce, and that only 12 countries are currently conducting active trade under the AfCFTA framework.
