The first Africa Trade Conference in Cape Town was successfully held in South Africa. The conference organized by Access Bank PLC brought together industry leaders, policy makers, and trade experts to offer solutions.

The first Africa Trade Conference in Cape Town aims to accelerate intra-African trade and unleash the continent's economic potential. Critical challenges were addressed during the conference. These include limited access to capital, gaps in market information, deficits in trust between trading partners, and the urgent need for a modernized trade infrastructure. During the conference, Roosevelt Ogbonna, Managing Director/CEO of Access Bank Group, emphasized the urgency of collaboration in the financial sector to facilitate access to capital and foster a business environment where African businesses can grow and compete globally. He said they need to “invest in in initiatives that ensure we can bring businesses together, create trust, and build the connections needed for commerce. In doing so, we need to discard the notion that 'Made in Africa' is inferior to any other product made elsewhere in the world. We need to buy from Africa, be proud to wear African products, and invest in Africa, because that's what the continent needs to propel itself into the next generation.”

The conference was marked by a moving testimony from Nathalie Louat, Global Director at the SFI/World Bank Group. She highlighted the critical role of trade finance in enabling cross-border transactions and supporting financial inclusion