The Governor of the Central Bank of Egypt and the President of Afreximbank held a joint press briefing on May 13, 2026, to outline preparations for the 33rd Afreximbank Annual Meetings (AAM2026), scheduled to take place in Alamein city from June 21 to 24. According to Antigua.news, the briefing was held at the Central Bank of Egypt's headquarters and was attended by more than 100 local and international media representatives, both in person and virtually.
The AAM2026 will be held under the patronage of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and is widely regarded as one of Africa's premier annual gatherings focused on economic transformation.
Central Bank of Egypt Governor Hassan Abdalla reaffirmed his country's commitment to hosting the event and underscored Egypt's long-standing partnership with Afreximbank. "Egypt is honoured to host the 33rd Afreximbank Annual Meetings in Alamein, reflecting our continued commitment to supporting Africa's economic integration, trade expansion, and sustainable development," Abdalla said.
He described the meetings as a high-level platform for dialogue on African economic and financial cooperation, adding that they go beyond conventional discussions. "The Meetings extend beyond conventional discussions to advance key continental priorities, including trade finance, regional integration, and the pressing need to reform the global financial architecture to better reflect the development needs of emerging economies," he said.
Afreximbank President and Chairman of the Board of Directors Dr. George Elombi expressed appreciation for Egypt's strong support and coordination efforts ahead of the meetings. "Egypt and Afreximbank share a common vision to accelerate Africa's economic development, industrialisation, and widespread economic prosperity across the continent," he said.
Dr. Elombi added that AAM2026 would serve as a platform to strengthen partnerships, unlock investment opportunities, and advance discussions on intra-African trade, financial sovereignty, and economic resilience. "Through our Annual Meetings, Afreximbank aims to identify priority projects and actionable programmes that will accelerate the transformation of Africa's trade infrastructure. Africa's pace of growth will be driven by industrialisation and intra-African trade, and achieving this will require significant improvements in processing, logistics, and importantly, policy support from governments," he said.
The briefing highlighted the strategic partnership between Egypt and Afreximbank and the Bank's support across key sectors, including financial services, trade, industrial infrastructure, manufacturing, oil and gas, telecommunications, power, and construction.
Dr. Elombi disclosed that Afreximbank has provided approximately US$9.5 billion in financing to Egypt over the past three years. He also referenced the December 2025 groundbreaking of the Afreximbank African Trade Centre in Egypt's New Administrative Capital — a US$250 million development intended to strengthen Egypt's role as a regional hub for trade facilitation, payments, logistics, and SME development.
He further outlined plans for a proposed pan-African Gold Bank, an initiative designed to formalise Africa's gold value chains, strengthen central bank reserves, and reduce the continent's dependence on offshore refining and external trading centres.
The briefing also highlighted the broader economic benefits of Egypt hosting AAM2026, including boosting the country's profile as a regional financial and business hub, supporting the Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions sector, creating opportunities for Egyptian businesses and investors, and providing a significant boost to tourism in Alamein.
The 33rd Afreximbank Annual Meetings are expected to draw Heads of State, government ministers, central bank governors, business leaders, academics, entrepreneurs, private sector investors, and development partners. The programme will include policy discussions, plenary sessions, business and investment forums, deal-signing ceremonies, networking events, bilateral meetings, and forums on the African Continental Free Trade Area. Sessions covering trade finance, industrialisation, energy, infrastructure, and digital transformation are also planned.
