The Institutional Support for Digital Payments and e-Commerce Policies for Cross-Border Trade Project (IDECT) will evaluate policy gaps in the digital trade and e-commerce ecosystems of Côte d’Ivoire, Benin, Ghana, Liberia, Uganda, South Sudan, Zimbabwe, the Republic of Congo, São Tomé and Príncipe, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The project will see to the implementation of regional training and capacity-building programs focusing on cross-border e-payment and e-commerce for governments, private sectors, and Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs). These programs are expected to reach 600 participants, with 60% being women and youth. Additionally, a certified gender-sensitive e-learning training program addressing the unique challenges faced by women in digital trade and e-commerce, will be developed and disseminated to 2,500 participants, of whom 60% will be women.

The agreement between African Development Fund and Smart Africa was signed on Tuesday, 25 April, a day ahead of  the 2023 Transform Africa Summit which takes place in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, from 26-28 April.

African Development Bank Director General for Southern Africa Region Leïla Mokaddem, described the IDECT as a pivotal step towards strengthening Africa’s digital trade and e-commerce landscape.

“This initiative will bolster the development of harmonized e-payment policies, capacity building, and gender-sensitive frameworks, ultimately fostering a digital trade ecosystem that generates employment opportunities across the continent,” she said.

Lacina Koné, CEO of Smart Africa, said: “The IDECT project demonstrates our commitment to fostering digital transformation and economic growth in Africa. By addressing policy gaps and promoting gender-sensitive training, we are laying the foundation for a thriving digital trade and e-commerce ecosystem.”

Leveraging BFA’s strategic footprint in Angola, this guarantee will provide support to Small and Medium sized Enterprises, including women-led businesses.

The move will facilitate the import and export trade finance requirements of SMEs and, by extension, strengthen the Angolan credit market. The African Development Bank will provide up to 100% guarantee to participating banks for the non-payment risk arising from the confirmation of letters of credit and similar trade finance instruments issued by BFA.

Commenting on the approval, the Bank’s Director General for Southern Africa, Leila Mokaddem said, “The approval of this facility by the Board of Directors allows the African Development Bank to support BFA to finance trade-related transactions, such as exports of agricultural commodities, import of raw materials and inputs. This will strengthen BFA’s capacity to finance trade transactions for SMEs and local businesses, providing essential risk coverage to support value chain financing, working capital, and export-import transactions.”

African Development Bank Officer in Charge of the Financial Sector Development Department, Ahmed Attout emphasized the critical need for such support on the continent.

“We are excited about this partnership which will help BFA to increase its trade finance support to critical sectors of the Angolan economy by leveraging the capital relief provided by the AfDB’s AAA rated TG” he said. “This is aligned with the AfDB’s focus on private sector development through the provision of support to the financial sector,” he added.

Pietro Toigo, Bank’s country manager in Angola said: “The approval of this transaction is part of the African Development Bank’s efforts to support growth of the private sector and economic diversification in Angola, and extend provision of credit to underserved segments of the market”.

The African Development Bank estimates the annual trade finance gap for Africa to be around $81 billion. Compared to multinational corporates and large local corporates, SMEs and other domestic firms have greater difficulty in accessing trade finance. The TG is one of the strategic tools that the Bank deploys to help reduce the continent’s trade finance gap.