Cairo, 21 Nov. 2014 – The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has announced a contribution of one million dollars to the effort to combat the outbreak of the Ebola virus disease in Africa.
Afreximbank President Jean-Louis Ekra announced the contribution during a one-day round table of the African Union with key African economic and business institutions which took place in Addis Ababa on 8 June.
The round table, which brought together the African Union, Afreximbank, the African Development Bank (AfDB) and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, among others, resulted in a decision to join forces and create and support a funding mechanism to deal with the Ebola outbreak and its consequences
The fund, to be established under the auspices of the AU Foundation through a facility managed by the AfDB, will boost efforts to equip, train and deploy African health workers to fight the disease.
In addition to its cash contribution, Afreximbank will also work with some of its key customers to encourage them to provide support services that aid the effort to tackle the Ebola crisis, stated Mr. Ekra. For instance, based on discussions already initiated by Afreximbank, a number of African airlines have agreed to provide free seats to health workers traveling to affected countries to participate in the anti-Ebola efforts.
The roundtable, co-convened the African Union Commission, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa and, AfDB, had a target to raise US$30m in cash for immediate needs and to also generate “in-kind” donations, in the form of capabilities, services and assets.
The participants included leaders of multilateral development institutions, large Africa-owned corporations, multinational corporations operating in Africa, non-governmental organisations and government representatives as well as some members of the academia.
The round table resulted in cash pledges of more than $28.5 million into the fund for immediate disbursement.
As at end of October, the virus had infected more than 13,700 people and killed over 4,900.
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About Afreximbank:
The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) is the foremost Pan-African multilateral financial institution devoted to financing and promoting intra- and extra-African trade. The Bank was established in October 1993 by African governments, African private and institutional investors, and non-African investors. Its two basic constitutive documents are the Establishment Agreement, which gives it the status of an international organization, and the Charter, which governs its corporate structure and operations. Since 1994, Afreximbank has approved almost $30 billion in credit facilities for African businesses, including about $3.5 billion in 2013. Afreximbank is headquartered in Cairo. For more information, visit: www.afreximbank.com