The island of Grenada is preparing to host the Africa-Caribbean Trade and Investment Forum (ACTIF 2025), a major economic forum that will bring together nearly a thousand participants from Africa, the Caribbean, and the rest of the world. Heads of state, investors, entrepreneurs, financial institutions, and SMEs will explore investment, trade, and cooperation opportunities. The event will focus on key sectors such as agribusiness, energy, infrastructure, and creative industries. The goal: to build a stronger and more prosperous Afro-Caribbean trade corridor, building on the 2024 edition, which generated over $4 billion in agreements.
A major event for economic integration between Africa and the Caribbean, Grenada is preparing to host the 2025 edition of the Africa-Caribbean Trade and Investment Forum (ACTIF 2025). « Resilience and Transformation – Strengthening Africa-Caribbean Economic Cooperation in an Era of Global Uncertainty » is the guiding theme for this fourth edition of ACTIF, which will be held from July 28 to 29, 2025.
The African-Caribbean Trade and Investment Forum, ACTIF, is no longer just an event. It is now transitioning to a marketplace where ideas are exchanged, where connections are bettered, and where relationships are built. So, for the past three editions, what we’ve seen is record attendance, ranging from 1,000, 1,005 from the first edition to the high of about 4,000, almost 4,000 in the Bahamas, when we held this event alongside our annual meetings last year.
OKECHUKWU IHEJIRIKA, Regional Director of Operations, Caribbean Office
Heads of state, senior officials, investors, members of the diaspora, and business leaders from the continent and the rest of the world are expected in the capital, St. George’s, to explore avenues for strengthened economic cooperation between the two regions. The forum, much more than a simple economic showcase, offers a series of activities ranging from B2B and B2G meetings, to sector exhibitions, including investment showcases, high-level panels and access to financing mechanisms.
And what we see as well is reawakening, because people are now beginning to realize that we are actually brothers and sisters between us. We are actually bedeviled by the same kind of problems, including we’re struggling with lack of infrastructures, we’re struggling with problems with payments, and so on. We have similar problems. And it makes sense that when we put heads together, we’ll be able to find that solution, which we used to address that. So the ACTIF has now been a platform that has that connectivity. We have recorded over almost $7 billion in terms of deals announced, in terms of executions, MOUs, and connections that have been established. So that’s an eloquent testimony to say there are indeed opportunities that can exist between these two regions.
OKECHUKWU IHEJIRIKA, Regional Director of Operations, Caribbean Office
According to the International Trade Centre (ITC), trade between Africa and the Caribbean could reach US$1.8 billion by 2028. This growth is possible thanks to the crucial role of public and private partners and the channeling of investments into strategic sectors, including agribusiness, mining, tourism, creative industries, financial services and logistics. Following the success of the 2024 edition in the Bahamas, which generated more than $4 billion in agreements, the Africa-Caribbean Trade and Investment Forum, an initiative of the African Export-Import Bank AFREXIMBANK, returns with the ambition of consolidating the trade corridor between Africa and the CARICOM region.
