PAMA Hosts High-Level Side Event on Trade-Driven Industrialisation at Afreximbank Annual Meetings

• As PAMA signs strategic MOU with PAOSMI to strengthen Africa’s industrial base

The Pan-African Manufacturers Association (PAMA), in collaboration with the African Business Council (AfBC) and the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), convened a high-level side event during the Afreximbank 32nd Annual Meetings (AAM2025), held from 26–27 June 2025 at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja, Nigeria.

Themed “Trade-Driven Industrialisation: A Pathway to Realising AfCFTA and the Africa We Want,” the event also served as the inauguration of the Continental Trade Mission.

The landmark gathering brought together prominent voices from across Africa’s industrial and policy landscape, including senior government officials, private sector leaders, and representatives of regional institutions from countries such as Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Libya, and Nigeria. The two-day event featured a keynote address, engaging plenary sessions, B2B matchmaking, strategic networking, and the signing of Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) to deepen industrial collaboration across borders.

The event attracted a prestigious lineup of dignitaries and thought leaders, including: Prof. Patrick Utomi, Chair, Pan-African Private Sector Trade and Investment Committee (PAFTRAC), Ms. Ron Osman, Director of Industry, Minerals, Economic Development and Tourism (IMET), African Union Commission, Mr. Yusuf Daya, Director of AU/AfCFTA Relations, Afreximbank, H.E. Amb. Mohamed Fouad, Ambassador of Egypt to Nigeria, H.E. Mr. Kolawole Sofola, Director of Trade, ECOWAS Commission, Dr. Amany Asfour, President, AfBC, Engr. Ahmed Mansur OFR, President, PAMA and Vice President, AfBC, Ms. Souad Aden-Osman, Executive Director, CoDA, Mrs. Kofo Akinkugbe, OON, Founder & CEO, SecureID and Mr. Chinedum Okereke, Chairman, Food, Beverage and Tobacco Sectoral Group

In a pivotal move set to reshape the future of Africa’s industrial landscape, the Pan-African Manufacturers Association (PAMA) and the PanAfrican Alliance of Small and Medium Industries (PAOSMI) signed a landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) during the PAMA–AfBC Side Event at the 32nd Annual Meeting of Afreximbank (AAM2025), hosted in Abuja.

The PAMA Manufacturing Global News Bulletin, June 2025, highlighted that this strategic alliance marks a defining moment in Africa’s pursuit of sustainable industrialisation, bringing together two of the continent’s most influential manufacturing bodies, the collaboration lays the foundation for a continent-wide framework to accelerate industrial development, particularly for Small and Medium Industries (SMIs), the backbone of Africa’s real economy.

It emphasized that under the new MoU, PAMA and PAOSMI will harness their collective networks and technical expertise to drive inclusive industrial development and deepen the participation of small and medium industries in the AfCFTA framework.

The goal of the collaboration, according to the bulletin is to drive inclusive growth, empower SMIs, and catalyse the emergence of a competitive and resilient industrial sector in Africa.

The MoU was formally co-signed by Dr. Henry E. Emejuo, Director General of PAOSMI, and Mr. Segun Ajayi-Kadir, mni, Co-Secretary General of PAMA, in a high-profile signing ceremony.

Engr. Ahmed Mansur OFR, PAMA President said “This collaboration is more than an MoU; it’s a bold step toward a new industrial reality for Africa.”

Also, the President of the African Business Council (AfBC), Dr. Asfour Amany, noted that the “alliance will help us build competitive industries by Africans, for Africans”.

The formal proceedings concluded with a symbolic exchange of the signed MoU documents and a group photograph featuring leaders and stakeholders, capturing what many hailed as a “watershed moment” for Africa’s manufacturing Ecosystem.