• Afreximbank increases CARICOM financing ceiling from US$3 billion to US$5 billion to accelerate regional transformation and value addition. 

• Announced by Dr. George Elombi at the 50th CARICOM Heads meeting in Basseterre (Feb 2026); targets full use of new limit in 3–4 years. 

• Part of the Global Africa initiative: links Africa & the Caribbean diaspora for trade, jobs, and agro-processing; $750M+ disbursed, $2B+ pipeline active. 

The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has raised its regional financing limit for the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) from US$3 billion to US$5 billion. This change was announced by Afreximbank President and Chairman of the Board, Dr George Elombi, during his address at the 50th Regular Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of CARICOM, which took place from February 24 to 27, 2026, in Basseterre, St. Kitts and Nevis.

The adjustment is part of Afreximbank's Global Africa initiative. This initiative extends the Bank's operations to include regions with historical, cultural, and ancestral connections to Africa, such as the Caribbean countries that form CARICOM. The goal is to facilitate greater trade, investment, and economic cooperation between Africa and the Caribbean's African diaspora.

To date, Afreximbank has disbursed over US$750 million in financing for projects in CARICOM member states. These funds have supported activities in infrastructure, trade finance, private sector development, agro-processing, tourism value chains, logistics, healthcare, and renewable energy. There is also an ongoing pipeline of transactions valued at more than US$2 billion, in various stages of execution.

Thirteen CARICOM member states have now acceded to Afreximbank's Establishment Agreement. This accession enables the Bank to deliver direct financing and technical support to both governments and businesses in those countries through dedicated country programs and facilities.

In his statement on February 25, 2026, Dr Elombi indicated that the Bank plans to fully utilise the new US$5 billion ceiling within the next three to four years. The additional US$2 billion in available capacity is directed toward projects that add value to local resources, particularly in agriculture and natural commodities. This involves processing raw agricultural products and other resources locally to produce goods with higher export value, which can help reduce reliance on imports, strengthen regional supply chains, and expand trade opportunities both within CARICOM and with external markets, including Africa.

The financing supports a range of activities across the public and private sectors. Public sector projects may include infrastructure development and measures to build resilience against climate-related risks. Private sector support targets small and medium-sized enterprises in sectors such as agro-industry, manufacturing, services, and creative industries. These interventions are expected to contribute to job creation, especially for young people, and to overall improvements in economic conditions and livelihoods in the region.

Under the Global Africa framework, Afreximbank has undertaken related activities in the Caribbean. These include the ongoing development of an African Trade Centre in Barbados, with an investment of approximately US$180 million announced in 2025. The centre is designed to promote trade, facilitate business connections, and support exchanges between Africa and the Caribbean.

Other components include assistance to improve regional air connectivity, expanding creative industries through the Creative Africa Nexus (CANEX) program, and implementing blended-finance arrangements for climate-focused projects. One example is the Green, Resilience and Sustainability Facility, developed in partnership with the CARICOM Development Fund.

Afreximbank functions as a multilateral development bank with a commercial orientation. It employs a variety of financial instruments, including direct loans, lines of credit, letters of credit, buyer and seller credits, guarantees, export credit insurance, and structured trade finance solutions. The increase in the CARICOM financing ceiling contributes to the Bank's efforts to diversify its overall portfolio by geography, expand the volumes of South-South trade (which currently represent less than 1% of total trade exchanges between Africa and the Caribbean), and generate sustainable returns through trade-linked financing activities.

For CARICOM countries, the expanded resources provide greater access to capital for addressing key economic priorities. These include enhancing food security through local production and processing, improving energy access, advancing digital transformation, and building resilience to external factors such as climate events, commodity price changes, and global supply disruptions. The initiative also aims to strengthen connectivity across trade logistics, financial systems, and infrastructure between Africa and the Caribbean.

The next AfriCaribbean Trade and Investment Forum is scheduled for July 2026 in St. Kitts and Nevis. This event is expected to serve as a platform for discussing detailed project implementation, identifying new partnership opportunities, and advancing collaboration under the Global Africa agenda.

This development represents a continuation and scaling of Afreximbank's engagement with Caribbean states. It increases the volume of financing available to support medium-term economic transformation, regional integration, and sustainable growth in the CARICOM region, while aligning with the Bank's broader objective of fostering economic linkages across the extended Global Africa network.

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