From the Nigerian capital Abuja, where the 32nd Annual Meeting of Afreximbank drew to a close on June 28, a historic announcement was made: Dr. George Elombi was elected the new president of the African import-export bank. A strategic choice for the institution, faced with the challenges of a turbulent economic world. Let’s take a look back at the career of this little-known architect of African finance.
On June 28, Afreximbank shareholders elected George Elombi to succeed Professor Benédict Oramah at the end of his 10-year term at the helm of the institution. This Cameroonian, Executive Vice President in charge of governance and legal services at the institution, is a transitional figure. He graduated from the University of London with a PhD in law specializing in international commercial arbitration. A lecturer in commercial law at the University of Hull in the United Kingdom from 1990 to 1996, he joined Afreximbank in 1996 as a lawyer. An expert in international contracts within the bank, he became Executive Secretary in 2009. Architect of Afreximbank’s new governance structure, he was appointed Executive Vice President in 2015, overseeing the explosion of assets, which grew from $13 billion to $40 billion in the space of 10 years. His expertise in banking allows him to have a dynamic vision.
We have seen that within an ongoing global fracture world lie opportunities for Africa. If we act decisively and strategically, then we can make the gains of those opportunities. The fragmentation of global trade under scores the urgency of accelerating the implementation of the African continental free trade area and boosting intra African trade to realise the potential that we all expect for the 1.7 billion people in our continent.
GEORGE ELOMBI, New President AFREXIMBANK
Innovative financial instruments such as PAPSS and the AfCFTA adjustment fund, with a network of 65 countries, are assets to strengthen the bank’s impact on Africa’s economic development.
We are building our future on the basis of our resilience past our own resilience and today we are talking about the fracture world the role of the of the institutions on helping to over those fractures are critical they are critical to restitute to rebuild and to seek what it is that we need to move our trade and development ahead.
GEORGE ELOMBI, New President AFREXIMBANK
Dr. George Elombi aims to strengthen the transparency, credibility, and strategic effectiveness of Afreximbank. His leadership should also foster better coordination of interventions between the public and private sectors with the aim of catalyzing productive and structuring investment. Dr. Elombi’s expertise is a major strategic asset to strengthen Afreximbank’s leadership as a true driver of the continent’s economic transformation.
