In Africa, FCI's activities in 2023 stemmed from several initiatives launched by FCI in partnership with Afreximbank since the post-COVID period in 2021. These initiatives mainly focus on five main aspects:

1. The promotion of factoring through basic module conferences and workshops;
2. The popularisation of the basic modules of the FCI-E-Learning courses on the different aspects of factoring;
3. Capacity building in the field of Trade Finance among banks with the launch of the Certificate in Trade Finance in Africa (COTFIA) with the collaboration of Afreximbank and the American University in Cairo;
4. Consulting with the FCI coaching programme to provide technical support and share the experience of experts in the profession with new entrants by providing them with all the technical training necessary for the launch of their newly created activities;
5. Last but not least is mobilising and increasing all categories of FCI membership types across Africa to increase our presence and visibility in Africa. 

Concretely, during 2023, FCI deployed these activities through a webinar on factoring for the attention of the Association of African Development Finance Institutions (AADFI), Banks, and Factors in association with Making Finance Work for Africa (MFW4A). Following that, FCI organised a regional conference with a new format on factoring and credit insurance from June 6-7 in Dakar in collaboration with the Central Bank of West Africa (BCEAO) and Afreximbank. Additionally, FCI held a workshop on factoring in Lagos, Nigeria, during the Afreximbank Trade Finance and Factoring Seminar. 

Similarly, as part of the popularisation of factoring under the FAPA subsidy from Afreximbank, we have distributed nearly 235 FCI E-learning licenses to enhance the capacities of various participants, particularly banks, microfinance institutions, and key stakeholders. Additionally, we organised a training workshop on capacity building for 14 banks to initiate factoring and reverse factoring activities, with the participation of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and NEXIM. This workshop occurred in Abuja, Nigeria, in August 2023. This type of second series workshop follows the first, launched in 2022 in Dakar in collaboration with the Central Bank of West Africa BCEAO for participants from French-speaking countries. Once again, this year, around thirty candidates from various African countries participated for a discontinuous period of 6 months online and in person in the COTFIA program organised by FCI and Afreximbank in collaboration with the American University of Cairo. This program is very successful with bank executives and financial institutions. Finally, in terms of membership, over the last two years, despite the cancellations, FCI has registered nearly ten new members in Africa and has two new countries of presence, notably the DRC and Guinea. 

Last but not least is the holding in Africa of the 55th FCI Annual Meeting in Marrakech at the end of October 2023, followed by the EBRD workshop on Supply Chain Finance, where we observed the participation in the annual of nearly 60 delegates from Africa, which marks an increasingly growing interest in factoring in Africa. 

After the FCI Annual Meeting, we continued with the Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF2023) organised by Afreximbank from 9-15 November 2023, where FCI exhibited its products for seven days, discussing with participants, banks, and institutions and organised a workshop with the participation of the Egyptian Factoring Federation (EFF) which was able to mobilise nearly 60 participants from Factoring Companies and Banks. 

Considering all these events and activities undertaken, the results of FCI's promotion and presence in Africa are highly positive. This is evident from the impacts of exposure and visibility, the achievement of expected objectives, and the implications for promoting and raising awareness about Factoring among financial institutions, including banks, factors, microfinance institutions, lawyers, and regulators. These stakeholders increasingly recognise the importance of factoring as an instrument for economic and financial development in Africa. 

We look forward to 2024 with great hope and serenity to reap the fruits of all these efforts undertaken over several years. 

This article was written by Mr Nassourou Aminou, FCI Regional Manager for Africa, for the February 2024 edition of the FCI In-Sight Newsletter.

Regional Conference on Factoring, Receivables Finance and Credit Insurance in Southern Africa

Join FCI & Afreximbank at the Regional Conference on Factoring, Receivables Finance and Credit Insurance in Southern Africa, set to take place on 22-23 April 2024 in Zimbabwe. Fellow industry-leading peers and government officials will gather to discuss the world of Factoring, highlighting what, where and how to use this product, the legal and regulatory requirements, the Credit Insurance Landscape, how the digital world plays a role in this industry, and so much more.

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• This article was recently published in the FCI In-Sight Newsletter, February 2024 Edition. To read more, click here.