At #IATF2025, the Africa Caribbean Business Council Catalyst of Change, SMEs, leading the Africa-Caribbean Trade Transformation session showed us the answer: real connections, real opportunities, and SMEs ready to lead the charge. This wasn’t just another panel – numbers were exchanged and seeds for new partnerships planted.
H. E. Dr. Amany Asfour, Africa Business Council (AfBC), called for turning cultural bonds into economic ones: We are one people, united but separated by the Atlantic. Now is the time to link our sectors, map our strengths, and trade among ourselves.
From Rwanda, Ms Nadege Uwamahoro, of Braimpire Ltd, captured it perfectly: When women are given the right tools and networks, they don’t just trade products, they transform traditions into thriving businesses.
For Okechukwu Ihejirika of African Export Import Bank – Afreximbank Caribbean Office, finance and connectivity are essential: We are one people, the challenge is to build the bridge that turns our shared culture into real business.
And Mr Naziru Abdullahi of KK Kingdom Group, offered a practical way forward: “Special Economic Zones can be Afro-Caribbean hubs giving SMEs the space, incentives and protection to trade freely.”
This session once again highlighted that SMEs are the catalysts that can turn shared history into shared prosperity.