By: Goodluck E.Adubazi, Abuja.
The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) and ZEP-RE (PTA Reinsurance Company) have signed a three-year Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen professional and institutional capacity in trade, insurance, reinsurance, risk management and trade facilitation across Africa.
The agreement brings together the Afreximbank Academy (AFRACAD) and ZEP-RE Academy to develop and scale learning, research and knowledge programmes that draw on the complementary expertise of both institutions.
The MoU was signed at ZEP-RE’s offices in Nairobi by Stephen Tio Kauma, Group Managing Director, Human Resources, Afreximbank, and Jephita Gwatipedza, Group Deputy Chief Executive Officer and Chief Operating Officer, ZEP-RE.
Under the partnership, the institutions will develop practical learning solutions aimed at equipping professionals, institutions and market participants with the skills and knowledge required to support Africa’s expanding trade and investment ecosystem.
The three-year collaboration will focus on three strategic areas, including the co-creation of digital learning content such as e-learning courses, toolkits and African case studies.
Through a joint “content factory” approach, AFRACAD and ZEP-RE Academy will identify priority themes and transform them into structured and reusable learning resources. The materials will be made available through AFRACAD’s digital learning platform and/or ZEP-RE Academy’s Learning Management System.
The two institutions will also jointly design and deliver professional and executive development programmes covering risk and reinsurance, trade guarantees, trade facilitation, financial infrastructure and market development.
The programmes may include short courses, executive masterclasses, certification programmes and other structured learning delivered physically, virtually or through blended formats.
The partnership will further promote research, knowledge creation and thought leadership through joint studies, webinars, policy dialogues and industry forums involving practitioners, regulators, development partners and private-sector leaders.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Kauma said Africa’s ability to expand trade and investment depended not only on financial resources and infrastructure, but also on knowledge, skills and institutional capacity.
He said AFRACAD had made capacity building central to Afreximbank’s mandate of transforming Global African trade, adding that the partnership with ZEP-RE would combine expertise in trade finance, insurance, reinsurance and risk management.
According to him, the collaboration would help develop “practical, scalable and Global Africa-focused learning and knowledge solutions” capable of equipping professionals and institutions to drive greater trade and investment across the continent.
Gwatipedza said sustainable trade expansion required institutions involved in financing and facilitating trade to understand, price and manage the risks associated with it.
He said the partnership would connect trade finance with insurance and reinsurance expertise while strengthening institutional capability across African markets.
He added that the success of the collaboration would ultimately be measured by whether professionals and institutions became better equipped to respond to Africa’s evolving trade and investment landscape.
The MoU builds on an existing collaboration between Afreximbank and ZEP-RE. In 2025, the institutions launched the Trans-Africa Bond Alliance (TABA) to strengthen insurance capacity, facilitate cross-border trade and support the movement of goods and investment across Africa.
Since commencing operations in June 2025, TABA has supported approximately US$185 million in bonds in 2025 and US$280 million in the first quarter of 2026, with risks originating from 24 cedents across five countries.
TABA supports Afreximbank’s African Collaborative Transit Guarantee Scheme (AACTGS) and the broader African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) trade facilitation agenda by promoting a harmonised, technology-enabled approach to transit guarantees across African borders.
The wider AACTGS is backed by US$1 billion in guarantee limits, including a US$300 million facility being implemented with ZEP-RE in the COMESA region.
The initiative is designed to reduce reliance on multiple national transit bonds, free up working capital tied up as collateral and improve the efficiency and predictability of cross-border trade.
The new MoU extends the existing collaboration into capacity building, with a focus on developing the technical expertise and institutional knowledge required for increasingly sophisticated trade, insurance and risk-management solutions across African markets.
The partnership is expected to contribute to a stronger pool of African expertise capable of addressing complex issues at the intersection of trade, finance, insurance and risk, while supporting regional integration and sustainable economic development.
The MoU will initially run for three years and may be renewed by mutual agreement.
