Afreximbank And Grenada Convene ACTIF2025 Forum Afrique-Caraïbes On Trade And Investment

Afreximbank and the government of the Grenade have convened the fourth Forum Afrique-Caraïbes sur le commerce et l’investissement (ACTIF2025) from 28 to 29 juillet 2025 in George’s, Grenade, under the theme « Résilience et transformation – Renforcer la coopération économique Afrique-Caraïbes dans un contexte d’incertitude mondiale. » The communique says the forum recognizes deep historical, cultural and ancestral links between Africa and the Caribbean and calls for stronger intra-african and intra-caribbean markets. It also says the parties will support the deepening of cooperation between Africa and the Caribbean by building resilient transregional value chains in sectors including agriculture, tourism, energy, health, financial services, and manufacturing. The document further states that the forum salutes the approval of an agreement of free trade Afrique-Caraïbes aimed at eliminating obstacles to trade and strengthening regulatory coherence.

“Two months before the Fourteenth World Trade Organization Ministerial Conference (MC14), which will be held from March 26 to 29 in Yaoundé, Cameroon (Africa), Members are intensifying debates on electronic commerce within the framework of the Electronic Commerce Work Programme”

Aduana News

Two months before the Fourteenth World Trade Organization Ministerial Conference (MC14), WTO Members are intensifying debates on electronic commerce within the Electronic Commerce Work Programme, with the meeting reported after a session held this Wednesday (January 28, 2026) in Geneva. The WTO says the moratorium on imposing customs duties on electronic transmissions is in a decisive phase of the debate, and it notes the moratorium has been renewed at every WTO Ministerial Conference since 1998. Members agreed to extend it until March 31, 2026, or until the next Ministerial Conference, whichever comes first, and the facilitator of the Electronic Commerce Work Programme, Ambassador Richard Brown (Jamaica), urged delegations to find convergence points for a possible ministerial decision. The discussions also focus on reinvigorating the Work Programme to make it more effective and development-oriented, as Members exchange views on two text-based proposals examined since November.

Alongside trade-policy forums and WTO negotiations, business-focused efforts to speed cross-border transactions are being framed as a practical lever for Africa-Caribbean commerce. Africa24 TV says the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) will enable cross-border payments to be completed in under 120 seconds and describes the system as a way to reduce transaction costs by more than 90%. The outlet quotes PAPSS Chief Executive Officer MIKE OGBALU III saying, "commerce cannot take place without payment," and it adds that current cross-border transactions between Africa and global markets generally take three to five days and depend on correspondent banks located outside the continent. In parallel, UNCTAD describes its TrainForTrade blended learning strategy (2022–2025) as empowering Small Island Developing States to adopt trade policies supporting the growth of the digital economy and strengthening resilience during crises.

“Nous, la Banque Africaine d’Import-Export (Afreximbank) et le gouvernement de la Grenade, avons convoqué le quatrième Forum Afrique-Caraïbes sur le commerce et l’investissement (ACTIF2025) du 28 au 29 juillet 2025 à George’s, Grenade, sous le thème « Résilience et transformation – Renforcer la coopération économique Afrique-Caraïbes dans un contexte d’incertitude mondiale”

African Export-Import Bank