By Nik Ogbulie (just back from Washington)
The bell tolls for Dr Geaorge Elombi, as he takes over the mantle of leadership from the bank’s debonair President and Chairman, Board of Directors, Afreximbank
On Friday and Saturday, October 24 and 25, 2025, respectively, in Cairo, Egypt.
Come this weekend, the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) will witness a major transition, as the current President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the multilateral financial institution, Professor Benedict Okechukwu Oramah hands over the baton of leadership of the Bank to Dr. George Elombi, who is presently Executive Vice President (Corporate Governance and Legal Services).
Dr. Elombi, a Cameroonian lawyer, was elected at the recent Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Bank in Abuja, Nigeria, to serve as the 4th President of Afreximbank, and there will be the investiture and swearing-in ceremony to usher him into the exalted office on Saturday, October 25, 2025.
Apparently, the duo may have had their days together as colleagues of the ubiquitous development bank during the 9th Babacar Ndiaye Lecture Series on the sidelines of the just concluded 2025 World Bank/IMF Annual Meetings in Washington DC, where they shun like 1000 stars in that classic event at Wilard Intercontinental Hotel.
The duo also took the centre stage at the launching of the UBA WHITEPAPER, an investment perspective on African capital. They also used the opportunity to offer an insight into their brain-child known as the Intra-African Trade Initiatives, which also corroborates Tony Elumelu’s WhitePaper for UBA.
A sea of international journalists had submerged Oramah and Elombi at the event in furtherance to the explanations of the future of the bank in its trail-blazing roles for Africa’s economic development. Oramah had used that space to insist that Africa’s domestic capital is sine qua non for the much desired growth perspective, emphasizing that a new payment system is already belting up to give filip to the ambition which has already gained tremendous support among the African Central Banks..
Oramah’s two terms of a hugely successful ten year tenure will, on Friday, October 24, 2025, be honored with a Conference on the theme: “A Decade to Build the Pillars of Future Prosperity,” which will x-ray the achievements of his administration and the major legacies he is leaving behind.
This will then be followed by the investiture ceremony and swearing-in of Dr. Elombi is the 4th President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Afreximbank.
Dr. Elombi, who holds a Master’s degree and a Doctorate in Law (International Commercial Arbitration) from the University of London, and who lectured at the University of Hull in the United Kingdom before joining Afreximbank, will also be expected to unveil, or give insights into the blueprint of his Presidency.
To be witnessed by Presidents, Heads of Government, Ministers, business chiefs, institutional partners and other major stakeholders, especially from Africa, the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), and elsewhere in the world, the program will also present an opportunity for canvassing and securing more funding for intra-African trade.
There will equally be efforts to mobilize more support for the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) .
