African Development Bank approves €25 million trade finance facility for Cameroon SMEs
The African Development Bank has approved €25 million in financing to help Cameroon’s Crédit Communautaire d’Afrique-Bank (CCA-Bank) expand trade finance offerings to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and other businesses. The facility was approved during a Board session on 1 December in Abidjan.
The financing will be deployed as a Transaction Guarantee, providing risk coverage to eligible African banks for their trade finance transactions. This support is designed to facilitate imports of equipment for the industrial, agro-industrial, and telecommunications sectors.
Boosting SMEs and private sector growth
“The facility will support Cameroon’s economy by enabling the African Development Bank to provide up to a 100 percent guarantee to confirming banks,” said Lamin Drammeh, Head of the Bank Group’s Trade Finance Division. “This will help confirm letters of credit and other trade finance instruments issued by CCA-Bank for the benefit of SMEs.”
Léandre Bassolé, Director General of the Bank’s Central Africa region, emphasised that the initiative strengthens CCA-Bank’s ability to support SMEs, including women-owned and youth-led enterprises. The financing is expected to boost local productive sectors, promote economic growth, and create and maintain thousands of jobs.
Strengthening strategic partnerships
Marguerite Fonkwen Atanga, Managing Director of CCA-Bank, welcomed the support from the African Development Bank, calling it a “major milestone” for the institution. She noted that the facility will significantly enhance CCA-Bank’s capacity to assist SMEs, women entrepreneurs, and start-ups across Cameroon and Africa.
This strategic partnership reflects the African Development Bank’s ongoing commitment to expanding its direct interventions in the private sector and supporting inclusive economic development across the continent.
