The African Guarantee Fund for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (AGF) has entered into a re-guarantee transaction of an amount of USD 30 million with Afreximbank, to increase its guarantee capacity for SME financing. 

The signing that took place on the sidelines of the Intra-African Trade Fair in Cairo, was undertaken by AGF’s Chief Risk Officer, Constant N’ZI and Afreximbank’s Global Head of Trade Finance, Gwen MWABA.

AGF Chief Executive Officer, Felix BIKPO welcomed the collaboration with Afreximbank saying it will greatly increase AGF’s capacity to enable lenders across the continent increase their SME financing. “AGF can continue to go beyond its limits and tackle the needs of more Medium Enterprises” he added.

The re-guarantee of USD 30 million will enable AGF to leverage through its Partner Financial Institutions, the issuance of more than USD 120 million worth of loan facilities to SMEs in various sectors of trade. The re-guarantee is expected to benefit about 20,000 SMEs across Africa, who, in turn are expected to create more than 40,000 jobs into the economies of African countries. African Guarantee Fund is the first African institution wholly dedicated to mobilizing private resources for SME development in Africa. AGF has over the past 6 years, led the guarantee market in Africa by issuing guarantee products to more than 100 financial institutions, that have in turn made available USD 1.6 billion of financing for SMEs across the 40 countries in Africa.