IATF 2025 exceeds expectations with record $48.3bn in trade deals

The curtain has fallen on the Intra-African Trade Fair 2025 (IATF 2025), and the event has officially set a new record in trade deals, promising to be a game-changer for Africa’s economic integration.

Organised by the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), this year's fair facilitated a significant $48.3 billion in trade and investment agreements against the target of $44bn.

Algeria accounted for $11.4bn in signed deals, with another $11.6bn currently in the pipeline.

This considerable figure eclipses the $43bn in deals from the previous fair held in Cairo in 2023 and the $42bn agreements made in Durban in 2021, spotlighting the event’s critical role in unlocking Africa’s economic potential.

The week-long fair attracted a remarkable turnout, featuring 2 148 exhibitors from 132 countries and more than 112 000 delegates.

Dr Gainmore Zanamwe, Afreximbank’s director of trade facilitation and investment promotion, noted that the 2025 event surpassed the key performance indicators set by the Advisory Council, highlighting the growing interest and enthusiasm for intra-African trade.

Former Nigerian President and chair of the IATF Advisory Council, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, declared the event a resounding success that “exceeded all expectations and targets.”

In his closing address on Wednesday, Obasanjo praised Algeria’s government and people for their hospitality and organizational excellence, which he said played a “pivotal role” in the seamless execution of the week-long fair.

He extended gratitude to President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, describing Algeria’s hosting as a demonstration of the nation’s commitment to African cooperation.

“This event has been more than just a trade fair; it has been a testament to our shared vision for a more integrated and prosperous Africa,” Obasanjo said.

“As we depart, let’s carry the momentum of this gathering forward. Let us continue to build on the connections made, to explore new opportunities and to work together to realise the full potential of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).”

Special recognition was given to Afreximbank, the AfCFTA Secretariat, and the African Union Commission, co-conveners of the event, as well as sponsors, delegates, and organizers.

AfCFTA Secretary-General, Wamkele Mene, emphasized that the agreements signed in Algiers must translate into measurable trade growth.

“The transactions concluded here, almost $50bn, are very encouraging. This shows that IATF is growing from strength to strength as the marketplace of the AfCFTA,” Mene said.

“We will deploy trade rules — including protocols on women, youth, and investment — to make sure we double intra-African trade by 2035.”

Afreximbank’s outgoing president, Benedict Oramah, hailed the IATF 2025 as a resounding success that surpassed expectations.

“By all measures, including the number of buyers, visitors, exhibitors, and countries, as well as the value of deals made, this has been the best we have seen. It sets the stage for what will happen going forward,” Oramah said.

“In the future, the taste of the pudding is in the eating. It is the extent to which we implement the deals signed here that will count. So, as we have done in the past, Afreximbank will follow up on all the deals and make sure that by the time we get to Lagos in 2027, most of them are completed. We will finance where they need financing, and facilitate where they need facilitation.”

After a rigorous bid and due diligence exercise, Nigeria emerged as the successful host country of the fifth edition of the IATF set to be held in 2027.

There was a shared call for deeper engagement of youth, women, and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Africa’s trade ecosystem, as well as the need to increase participation from both African and non-African countries in future editions of the fair.

Concerns were also raised regarding the limited presence of African financial institutions, with a call for stronger involvement from banks, insurers, and credit facilitators to support trade finance and risk management across the continent.

Oramah also urged African financial institutions to play a bigger role in future editions.

“It is awkward that apart from Shelter Afrique, I did not see other African development banks here. We must bring our financial institutions deliberately to support the trade being generated,” he said.

“So, we must find a way to get African financial institutions, including credit insurance companies, to start deliberately supporting the trade that is beginning to develop.”

BUSINESS REPORT