By Onu Okorie

Nigeria and three other African countries are set to benefit from a US$500 million Global Credit Facility secured by the Africa Trading and Distribution Company ATDC from the African Export-Import Bank Afreximbank to strengthen trade, logistics and distribution across the continent.

The facility, which will initially support ATDC’s operations in Nigeria, Egypt, Malawi and Zimbabwe, is expected to help close gaps in trade and market intelligence, improve market access and support implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area AfCFTA.

Afreximbank and ATDC signed the financing agreement to support the purchase, movement and distribution of commodities and products across African and global markets.
Under the facility, Afreximbank will provide ATDC with trade-finance capacity to undertake and scale eligible trading and distribution transactions across Africa.
The financing will support the purchase and aggregation of African goods, as well as associated logistics, transportation, warehousing and distribution costs. It is designed to provide financing at different stages of the trade and distribution cycle.
Commenting on the agreement, Mrs. Kanayo Awani, Executive Vice President, Intra-African Trade and Export Development at Afreximbank, said the US$500 million facility underscored the bank’s commitment to strengthening the trade, logistics and distribution infrastructure required to realise the potential of AfCFTA.
“By facilitating the efficient distribution of ‘Made-in-Africa’ goods across the continent, the facility will deepen regional value chains, expand market access for African producers, and boost manufactured exports,” Awani said.
She said the initiative would advance AfCFTA’s objective of building a more integrated and industrialised African economy while enhancing the global competitiveness of African products.
According to her, improved distribution networks would position Africa to increase its exports of value-added and manufactured goods, describing such developments as critical to expanding the continent’s export footprint and supporting economic transformation.
The Chief Executive Officer of ATDC, Mr. Stewart Makura, said Africa’s trade potential could only be fully realised through reliable systems connecting producers, processors, manufacturers and markets.
“Realising Africa’s full trade potential requires reliable systems that connect producers, processors, manufacturers and markets,” Makura said.
He added that the facility would strengthen ATDC’s capacity to aggregate supply, mobilise working capital and move goods efficiently across value chains.
“Together with Afreximbank, we will support stronger supply chains, value addition, import substitution and intra-African trade,” he said.
ATDC is a pan-African platform established to support the expansion of African trade, accelerate industrialisation through increased local value addition and strengthen economic integration across the continent.
The company will deploy financing under the facility to eligible trade, logistics and distribution transactions, with repayments anchored on proceeds generated from the sale of goods financed through the facility.
Beyond financing individual transactions, the facility is expected to enable ATDC to develop repeatable trade corridors and expand access to dependable sourcing and distribution networks across African markets.
It is also expected to support commercially sustainable trade flows, greater processing of African commodities and increased regional availability of raw materials, production inputs and value-added products.
The initiative comes amid efforts to deepen intra-African trade and strengthen regional value chains under AfCFTA, with trade finance, logistics and efficient distribution networks remaining important components of Africa’s drive towards greater economic integration and industrialisation.