FEDA Membership Hits 24 as Senegal, Liberia Join, Angola, Zimbabwe Ratify Deal
The Fund for Export Development in Africa (FEDA), the equity investment arm of the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), has expanded its membership to 24 countries following the accession of Senegal and Liberia and the ratification of its Establishment Agreement by Angola and Zimbabwe.
The development is expected to strengthen FEDA’s ability to provide long-term equity and quasi-equity financing for strategic projects across Africa, particularly in energy, manufacturing, logistics, agro-processing, financial services and critical mineral processing.
Dr George Elombi, President and Chairman of the Boards of Directors of Afreximbank and FEDA, said the latest developments reflected growing confidence among African governments in continent-owned financial institutions.
“These latest membership milestones demonstrate the growing confidence of African governments in the institutions they own and control and their commitment to building strong institutions capable of mobilising and deploying African capital for Africa’s development,” Elombi said.
He said FEDA’s financing tools would be important to the continent’s industrialisation drive.
“As the Afreximbank Group pursues its African industrialisation agenda, FEDA’s equity and quasi-equity instruments will become critical to executing strategic industrial projects at national and regional levels,” he said.
According to FEDA, the entry of the four countries will create opportunities to support projects that strengthen domestic production, regional value chains and export capacity.
The fund provides equity, quasi-equity and other forms of patient capital to businesses and projects that advance economic diversification, regional integration and export development.
FEDA Chief Executive Officer, Emmanuel Assiak, said the expanded membership would give the fund greater scope to work with governments and private-sector investors.
“FEDA’s continued membership growth significantly expands the markets in which we can pursue our mandate and build stronger partnerships with governments and the private sector,” Assiak said.
He identified Senegal, Liberia, Angola and Zimbabwe as markets offering investment opportunities across strategic sectors.
“We look forward to translating this expanded footprint into investments that strengthen local and regional value chains, support competitive African businesses and deliver sustainable economic impact,” he said.
The expansion comes as FEDA significantly increases its financial capacity. Over the past five years, Afreximbank’s commitment to the fund has risen from $100 million to $1.3 billion, giving it greater capacity to participate in larger investments across the continent.
The increased funding could enable FEDA to mobilise additional capital alongside its own resources and build partnerships with public and private investors to scale up financing for African businesses and strategic projects.
For the four new member states, the expanded FEDA platform could provide access to African-led capital for projects in sectors such as energy, mineral processing, manufacturing and agro-processing, while helping businesses integrate more effectively into regional and continental markets.
FEDA’s latest expansion therefore marks a broader push to increase the availability of African equity capital for productive investment, as the continent seeks to deepen industrial capacity, retain more value from its resources and strengthen intra-African trade.
