a change of guard at Afreximbank

On Saturday, the investiture and swearing-in ceremony of George Elombi as the fourth president of Afreximbank will take place in Cairo, Egypt.

A day before the investiture, high-level guests will gather to honour the legacy of outgoing President Benedict Oramah through a curated series of thematic events proceeding under the theme – “A decade to build the pillars of future prosperity.”

A week ago, while welcoming Oramah, Elombi and other dignitaries to the launch of United Bank for Africa’s whitepaper: “Banking on Africa’s Future: Unlocking Capital and Partnerships for Sustainable Growth,” on the sidelines of the IMF/World Bank Annual Meetings, Tony Elumelu, chairman of UBA, made a telling comment reflecting the esteem in which the institution is held.

“I am happy to welcome Professor Oramah, and Dr Elombi who will be taking over shortly as the President of Afreximbank, in what I believe has been one of most orderly successions on the continent.”

The announcement of Elombi as the successor to Professor Benedict Oramah whose ten years tenure comes to an end on October 24, 2025, was made at the bank’s 32nd annual general meeting in Abuja, Nigeria.

Accepting the honour, Elombi, who joined the bank in 1996 as a legal officer,  and who is moving up from his role as the bank’s vice president in charge of governance, legal and corporate services said:

“I have worked alongside remarkable colleagues and extraordinary leaders to help shape this institution’s vision, its mandate as well as its growth. I see Afreximbank as a force for industrialising Africa and for regaining the dignity of Africans wherever they are. I will work to preserve this important asset.”

A bold voice for Africa

At different global forums, including most recently at the Babacar Ndiaye lecture on the sidelines of the World Bank meetings, Elombi has advocated for stronger African financial institutions amid geopolitical shifts, taken issues with the way global credit ratings agencies rate the continent, and defended the preferred creditor status of African multilateral institutions.

In his comments at the Afreximbank annual meetings in Abuja, he stated that “a small number of African multilaterals have emerged and are making a statement, taking their place, becoming significant and creating anxiety among the established multilaterals and members of the Paris Club.”

And while speaking in Washington, Elombi issued a call to action: “the necessity of having African institutions which are strong is not merely aspirational, it is a call to action and reminds us that Africa’s future depends on building institutions that reflect our values.”

The 1989 graduate of the University of Yaoundé, Cameroon, who also has a master’s degree in law from the London School of Economics and a doctorate in commercial arbitration, has his work cut out for him as he steps into the big shoes vacated by Oramah.

In ten years, his predecessor transformed Afreximbank into what has been described as “an engine of African economic transformation and integration,” helping birth a new Pan-African Payments and Settlements System to boost the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) and providing funding for projects covering a diverse range of sectors from energy to the creative industry.

The lender disbursed $20bn in trade finance in 2024 alone and is set to double the amount in one year.