To accelerate Africa’s economic integration, close to half a billion Namibia Dollars (US$28 million) approved as initial capitalisation to transition the Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF) into an independent, permanent African institution is a positive step for the sustainability of this crucial entity. As unveiled at the recent Intra-African Trade Fair 2025 (IATF2025) in Algiers, IATF will evolve into the Intra-African Trade Fair Company (IATFCO) to be headquartered in Harare, Zimbabwe.

The development is aimed at making the new entity sustainable, scalable and deeply aligned to the vision of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) with its single market of over 1.4 billion people and an estimated GDP of over US$3.5 trillion.

The initial capitalisation for IATFCO was approved the Board of the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), the pan-African multilateral financial institution founded in 1993 to finance and promote intra- and extra-African trade.

President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Afreximbank, Prof Benedict Oramah, congratulated Zimbabwe and challenged it, alongside the Advisory Council, to expedite the new entity’s opening as an independent and sustainable organisation.

“This is a huge milestone for IATF. It is encouraging that the Board of Afreximbank has approved an initial capitalisation of US$28 million for the institution. While we anticipate that the organisation would strive for financial sustainability, I would like to seize this opportunity to call on African governments, corporations, and financial institutions to support it during its early teething stage,” said Prof Oramah, calling for support it during the early teething stages.

Zimbabwe emerged victorious after formal bids for hosting the headquarters of IATFCO received from Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe and South Africa.

Announcing Zimbabwe’s selection, the Chairman of the IATF Advisory Council and former Nigerian president Olusegun Obasanjo explained that Zimbabwe was competitively selected for its conferencing facilities, robust air connectivity, accommodation capacity and pledged land for expansion.

“This opens a new chapter for IATF as it continues powering growth in intra-African trade and playing its role as the most important trade and investment gathering on the continent. IATF is a symbol of Africa’s economic awakening, where the power of trade and investment unifies us from across regions of the African continent and breathes life into the ambition of the African Continental Free Trade Area AfCFTA,” said Obasanjo.

The recent announcement followed a rigorous selection process and eventual approval by the IATF Advisory Council and marks a new era in the organisation of IATF, which  is co-convened biennially by the Afreximbank, the African Union Commission and the AfCFTA Secretariat.

IATF is a platform for businesses to showcase goods and services  and was  attended by more than 112 000 visitors from 132 countries, at IATF2025, which took place from 4 to 10 September. The fair ended with US$48.3 billion in trade and investment deals signed over the seven days of the continental exposition while welcoming over 2 100 exhibitors.

IATF is intended to provide a unique platform for facilitating trade and investment information exchange in support of increased intra-African trade and investment, especially in the context of implementing the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA).

In addition to African participants, the trade fair is also open to businesses and investors from non-African countries interested in doing business in Africa and in supporting the continent’s transformation through industrialisation and export development.