Trade Finance Can Drive AfCFTA …RCBank CEO Speaks at African Trade Leaders Dialogue in The Gambia
Banjul, The Gambia — The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Rokel Commercial Bank (RCBank), Dr. Walton Ekundayo Gilpin, has identified trade finance as a critical driver for the successful implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
Dr. Gilpin made this assertion while speaking on the theme, “Can Trade Finance Be a Key Driver of AfCFTA?” at the African Trade Leaders Dialogue held in The Gambia. He cautioned that Africa’s free trade ambitions risk falling short unless financial systems are strategically aligned to effectively support cross-border commerce.
According to him, many African businesses—particularly small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)—remain excluded from regional trade opportunities due to limited access to affordable and accessible trade finance facilities.
“Trade liberalisation without trade finance cannot deliver meaningful integration. Finance is the engine that must power AfCFTA,” Dr. Gilpin stated.
He called for stronger collaboration among African banks, governments, and development partners to close the continent’s trade finance gap and promote inclusive participation in intra-African trade.
Dr. Gilpin further emphasised the importance of innovative and digital trade finance solutions to reduce transaction costs, enhance transparency, and strengthen regional value chains across the continent.
His contributions at the dialogue reflected a growing consensus among African financial leaders that trade finance must be recognised not as a peripheral instrument, but as a central pillar in realising AfCFTA’s transformative potential.
Dr. Gilpin concluded by highlighting key structural challenges that must be addressed, including payment settlement bottlenecks, logistical constraints, limited productive capacity, low value addition, and prevailing trust deficits within the trade ecosystem. Addressing these issues, he noted, would significantly shrink the trade finance gap and improve the overall effectiveness of intra-African trade.
With strategic investment, policy alignment, and institutional cooperation, trade finance can unlock markets, empower African businesses, and elevate the continent’s competitiveness in global trade.
