The Bank received an Award of Excellence in Special and Experiential Events category for the Intra-African Trade Fair 2025 (IATF2025) held in Algiers, Algeria and an Award of Merit in the Social Media category for its Afreximbank Social Media Campaigns, reaffirming Afreximbank’s commitment to delivering impactful communications that advance its mandate of promoting trade, investment and industrialisation across Africa and the Caribbean.

The Award of Excellence for IATF2025 recognises the successful communications and stakeholder engagement programme delivered around the fourth edition of the Intra-African Trade Fair, Africa’s premier trade and investment event. IATF2025 brought together governments, businesses, investors, buyers, sellers and entrepreneurs from across Africa and beyond, creating a platform for trade and investment opportunities while advancing the objectives of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). The communications campaign played a pivotal role in driving global awareness, stakeholder participation, media visibility and engagement before, during and after the event, while showcasing the scale, ambition and dynamism of African enterprise and reinforcing a positive narrative about Africa’s capacity to trade, industrialise and compete on the global stage. Over 120,000 delegates attended IATF2025 in person and virtually, with deals worth over US$50 billion recorded.

The Award of Merit for Afreximbank Social Media Campaigns recognises the Bank’s strategic use of digital platforms to engage stakeholders, amplify its developmental impact and elevate conversations around trade, industrialisation, economic integration and investment opportunities across Africa and the Caribbean. Through a combination of compelling storytelling, thought leadership content, executive advocacy, multimedia production and real-time event coverage, Afreximbank’s social media platforms have continued to expand their reach and influence among policymakers, businesses, investors, development partners and the wider public. Among these platforms is the Afreximbank TV, a digital TV channel that is wholly owned and managed by Afreximbank, whose fifth edition was celebrated with dedicated coverage of IATF2025, providing live coverage of the activities to both pan African and global audiences.

Anne Ezeh, Director & Global Head, Communications and Events at Afreximbank commented: “We are delighted to receive these two awards, which attest to the expertise, creativity and efficiency of Afreximbank’s communications. As a pan African multilateral financial institution, we see storytelling as a powerful tool for advancing our mission — ensuring our initiatives, events, programmes and key announcements not only inform, but also inspire confidence, deepen engagement and amplify Africa’s transformation. These awards reinforce our resolve to continue delivering world-class communications that elevate African voices and projects a bold and authoritative narrative of the continent.”

Ms. Ezeh added that through innovative storytelling, digital engagement and integrated campaigns, the Bank will continue to amplify the impact of its programmes and partnerships  to project a more authentic narrative of Africa, one defined by opportunity, innovation, resilience and growing influence in the global economy.

For more than five decades, the IABC Gold Quill Awards have recognised excellence in strategic communications globally, celebrating programmes and campaigns that demonstrate measurable impact, innovation, creativity and outstanding execution. Widely regarded as the pinnacle of achievement in the communications profession, the awards are judged through a rigorous and independent evaluation process conducted by experienced communication leaders from around the world.

The Islamic Development Bank Institute (IsDBI) (https://IsDBInstitute.org) has released its 2025 Annual Report during the 2026 IsDB Group Annual Meetings held in Baku, Azerbaijan, showcasing a year of expanded impact in Islamic finance transformation, innovative solutions, and capacity development.

The report highlights how IsDBI strengthened its role as a global knowledge leader by advancing innovative solutions and scaling support to Member Countries through knowledge-based interventions, Islamic finance grants, and strategic partnerships.

In 2025, IsDBI significantly expanded its footprint in Islamic finance transformation, approving 25 new technical assistance projects valued at US$4.14 million and completing 19 projects worth US$3 million, supporting countries in strengthening regulatory frameworks and promoting inclusive financial systems.

Since 2013, the Institute’s interventions in this regard have reached over US$27.57 million across 181 projects benefiting more than 34 countries, underlining its sustained contribution to development outcomes across the Islamic world.

The Annual Report highlights major progress in IsDBI’s three flagship transformative projects, namely Awqāf Free Zones, Digital Postal Islamic Financial Services, and Smart Countertrade System, which have all advanced to pilot-ready stages. These initiatives aim to address global challenges such as financial inclusion, food and energy security, and trade resilience.

Furthermore, the Institute accelerated its focus on digital innovation in Islamic finance, enhancing its Islamic Finance Artificial Intelligence Assistant (IFAA) and hosting its first AI Hackathon on Islamic Finance, engaging more than 40 teams in developing cutting-edge solutions aligned with industry standards.

Human capital development in Islamic finance also remained a cornerstone of IsDBI’s work in 2025, with the delivery of over 20 training programs reaching around 500 professionals across Member Countries. A key achievement in this area was the Entrepreneurial Mindset Development Program, a flagship initiative equipping emerging leaders from 20 countries with innovation-driven and values-based entrepreneurship skills. The program was designed and implemented in collaboration with Prince Mohammed Bin Salman College of Business and Entrepreneurship, Saudi Arabia.

The Institute also strengthened its thought leadership through flagship publications, global partnerships, and digital engagement, reinforcing its position as a leading voice in Islamic economics and finance.

Commenting on the issuance of the Annual Report, Dr. Sami Al-Suwailem, Acting Director General of IsDBI, said: “I am pleased to note that the Institute has continued to strengthen its unique role in the global development ecosystem by bridging knowledge creation, building human capital, and designing innovative solutions to address economic challenges.”

The 2025 Annual Report is accessible on IsDBI website here (https://isdbinstitute.org/product/isdbi-annual-report-2025/).

From July 6 to 8, 2026, the Federation of African National Insurance Companies (FANAF) will organize the General Assembly on Insurance for All at the Sofitel Hotel in Cotonou, Benin, a major pan-African gathering dedicated to inclusive insurance.

The event will bring together nearly 400 African decision-makers from governments, regulatory and supervisory authorities, insurance and reinsurance companies, financial institutions, development banks, technical and financial partners, as well as professional organizations from across the continent.

The ambition is clear: to foster a shared vision and concrete commitments aimed at accelerating access to insurance for African populations while strengthening the sector’s contribution to the continent’s economic and social development priorities.

The discussions will culminate in the adoption of the Pan-African Pact for Insurance Inclusion and a 2026–2030 Strategic Action Plan, designed to structure collective action around an ambitious objective: contributing to the doubling of insurance penetration across the FANAF region by 2040.

An Economic, Social and Development Imperative

Within the CIMA zone, insurance penetration remains below 1% of GDP, compared to more than 6% globally.

As a result, millions of households, farmers, entrepreneurs, SMEs and informal sector actors remain deprived of essential protection mechanisms against health, climate, economic and social risks.

For FANAF, this reality now constitutes a major development challenge.

“Africa cannot build sustainable growth without strengthening protection mechanisms for its populations, businesses and investments. The Cotonou General Assembly must mark the starting point of a new continental ambition for African insurance and its role in the continent’s economic transformation,” said Mamadou Koné, President of FANAF.

Beyond Insurance: A Driver of Continental Transformation

For FANAF, insurance is no longer merely a risk coverage mechanism. It is also a strategic lever for economic resilience, savings mobilization, investment security, SME financing, support for climate transitions and the strengthening of financial inclusion.

Through this General Assembly, FANAF seeks to reposition insurance as a key stakeholder in Africa’s economic, social and financial transformation.

A Pact to Accelerate Action

The conclusions of the General Assembly will lead to the adoption of the Pan-African Pact for Insurance Inclusion, a reference framework intended to mobilize governments, regulators, market players, financial institutions and development partners around shared objectives.

The Pact will be accompanied by a 2026–2030 Strategic Action Plan defining priority intervention areas, coordination mechanisms and monitoring arrangements for the commitments undertaken.

A broad mobilization of public, private and financial partners will support its implementation in order to translate commitments into tangible results for African populations and economies.

Cotonou 2026: Building a Shared Vision

Beyond the insurance sector, the General Assembly aims to create an unprecedented platform for dialogue between governments, regulators, investors, financial institutions, technical partners and market actors in order to identify the levers needed to accelerate insurance inclusion across the continent.

Holding this event in Benin reflects the country’s broader economic and financial transformation momentum and illustrates the collective determination of African stakeholders to develop solutions tailored to the continent’s realities.

Through this initiative, FANAF intends to make Cotonou 2026 a defining moment for the future of African insurance and the starting point of a lasting continental mobilization in favor of insurance inclusion.