Prime Minister Edouard Ngirente has emphasised the significance of addressing key challenges at the country level to preserve economic gains and mitigate existing risks. He was speaking during the opening session of the 23rd Annual General Assembly of the African Trade and Investment Development Insurance (ATIDI), a pan-African trade and investment development insurer, on July 6. ALSO READ: African countries can create greater economic income with reduced tariffs The Prime Minister said there is a need to create and sustain conditions that are conducive to private sector development, and to remove structural impediments that stand in the way of businesses in African countries. “We also need to open our economies to market forces as much as possible and we also need to lower administrative barriers to trade and investments,” he added. ATIDI has a strong portfolio in Rwanda with their current exposure standing at close to $100 million. As the organisation continues to expand its footprints across the continent, Ngirente said the countries should enhance intra-African trade and investment in the context of the African Continental Free Trade Area. “Integration within the continent not only helps our businesses access expanded regional and continental markets, but also helps to navigate the risks of geo-economic fragmentation, which is presently threatening globalization,” he said. “African countries need to stand together and build resilience against the fallout from fragmentation. Sub-Saharan Africa is indeed more prone to global shocks with many countries relying heavily on imports of food, energy, and fertiliser.” According to Ngirente, these global shocks place Africa at a great disadvantage and undermine the continent’s ability to secure markets for its largely commodity driven exports. ALSO READ: Businesses ‘key to success of AfCFTA deal’ The Prime Minister emphasised that with initiatives by governments to create investment spaces that are conducive to businesses, the continent can become the next frontier for global economic growth and an attractive place in which to trade and invest. The combination of the Covid-19 pandemic, its lingering economic impact, the Russia-Ukraine conflict and climate change has tested Africa’s resilience since 2020. The region’s economic growth slowed down to 3.6 per cent from 4.1 per cent in 2021, with a large number of countries struggling with debt vulnerability, inflation, fiscal consolidation and the disruption of value chains. Johanness Birru, Chairman of Board of Directors at ATIDI, highlighted that the organisation is moving into the next five-year cycle of its corporate strategic plan, which is now aimed at orienting the organisation towards a more developmental, transformational, robust and reliable role. He said they have made adequate preparations for migrating to the new International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS) 17 reporting standard, which is expected to provide transparent reporting of ATIDI’s financial position and risk. “We are also at advanced stages of completing the digital transformation project which is intended to automate most of our processes from underwriting to finance, human resource and procurement functionalities,” he said. ATIDI has grown from a small African start-up, operational in just seven countries in 2001, into a pan-African institution with 21 member countries, with presence across Africa and a significant global reach.
