The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) and ZEP-RE (PTA Reinsurance Company) have signed a three-year agreement to strengthen professional skills and institutional capacity in trade, insurance, reinsurance, risk management and trade facilitation across Africa.

The agreement which was signed in Nairobi, brings together the Afreximbank Academy (AFRACAD) and ZEP-RE Academy to develop training, research and knowledge programmes aimed at professionals, institutions and other market participants involved in Africa’s growing trade and investment ecosystem.

The partnership is expected to combine Afreximbank’s expertise in African trade and trade finance with ZEP-RE’s experience in insurance, reinsurance and risk management, with the institutions developing practical learning programmes to address emerging challenges in cross-border trade and investment.

Under the agreement, the two institutions will develop digital learning materials, including e-learning courses, toolkits and African case studies. The materials will be produced through a joint content development programme and made available through AFRACAD’s digital platform and ZEP-RE Academy’s learning management system.

The partnership will also provide professional and executive development programmes covering areas such as risk and reinsurance, trade guarantees, trade facilitation, financial infrastructure and market development.

The programmes will include short courses, executive masterclasses and certification programmes, delivered physically, virtually or through a combination of both formats.

The two institutions will further collaborate on research and knowledge development through joint studies, webinars, policy discussions and industry forums. The platforms will bring together practitioners, regulators, development partners and private-sector leaders to exchange knowledge and examine practical responses to challenges facing African markets.

Speaking at the signing ceremony, Group Managing Director, Human Resources, Afreximbank, Stephen Tio Kauma, said Africa’s ability to expand trade and investment depended not only on finance and infrastructure, but also on knowledge, skills and institutional capacity.

He stated that AFRACAD had made capacity building a central part of Afreximbank’s mandate, adding that the partnership with ZEP-RE would combine expertise in trade finance, insurance, reinsurance and risk management.

According to Kauma, the collaboration would help develop scalable learning and knowledge solutions that equip professionals and institutions with the skills required to support greater trade and investment across Africa.

Group Deputy Chief Executive Officer and Chief Operating Officer, ZEP-RE, Jephita Gwatipedza, said sustainable trade expansion required institutions that could understand, price and manage the risks associated with trade and investment.

Gwatipedza said the partnership would connect trade finance with insurance and reinsurance expertise and strengthen institutional capacity across African markets.

He also noted that the impact of the collaboration would be measured by how effectively professionals and institutions were equipped to respond to the changing trade and investment environment.

The new agreement builds on the existing relationship between Afreximbank and ZEP-RE. In 2025, both institutions launched the Trans-Africa Bond Alliance (TABA) to strengthen insurance capacity, facilitate cross-border trade and support the movement of goods and investment across African markets.

Since it began operations in June 2025, TABA has supported about $185 million in bonds in 2025 and $280 million in the first quarter of 2026, with risks originating from 24 cedents across five countries.

The initiative supports Afreximbank’s African Collaborative Transit Guarantee Scheme (AACTGS) and the wider African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) trade facilitation agenda by promoting a harmonised and technology-enabled approach to transit guarantees across African borders.

The wider AACTGS is backed by $1 billion in guarantee limits, including a $300 million facility being implemented with ZEP-RE in the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) region.

The scheme is designed to reduce dependence on multiple national transit bonds, free up working capital tied up as collateral and improve the efficiency and predictability of cross-border trade.

The latest MoU extends the institutions’ collaboration to capacity building, with a focus on developing the technical expertise and institutional knowledge required to manage increasingly complex trade, insurance and risk solutions across African markets.

The partnership is expected to expand the pool of African professionals with expertise across trade, finance, insurance and risk management, while supporting deeper regional integration and sustainable economic development.