First Bank of Nigeria Limited, Nigeria’s premier and leading financial inclusion services provider, sponsored the Africa International Trade Exhibition (A.I.T.E 2023), held on 21 and 22 September 2023 at the Hilton Hotel Midtown, New York, U.S.A.
The event was themed “the imperatives of global trade for African SMEs as a game changer for the continent’s future prosperity”.
Woven into the fabric of society, with the rich heritage of being the premier Bank in West Africa, FirstBank’s sponsorship of the event reiterated its commitment to being the bank of first choice and financial gateway in supporting businesses to boost the growth and socio-economic development of the continent in today’s fast-evolving business landscape.
Visioner of the African International Trade Exhibition project, Tunde MacAlabi, said “The AITE project is conceived to assist African SMEs to gain greater penetration in the North American market that has huge potentials.
The African American population in the US is 30 million strong, spending close to 1.2 trillion dollars as consumers.
The popularity of our afrobeat music, the ground that it is gaining in North America and the globe is remarkable. With this idea, pushing authentic African made products into the market to rise on the wave of the popularity of our music can diversify the sources of foreign exchange income that we accurately need in Nigeria and Africa.
Speaking at the event, CEO of FirstBank Group Dr. Adesola Adeduntan, said: “I am particularly delighted that this year’s theme beams the spotlight on a sector that can be referred to as the bedrock of Africa’s economic prosperity. Africa’s SME sector is also a good representation of the unyielding and resilient spirit of the African people in the face of many daunting challenges.”
With a vision to become “Africa’s Bank of First Choice”, FirstBank’s commitment to the development and economic transformation of the African continent is unwavering and we will continue to make the required investments to actualize this goal. I make bold to say that, in FirstBank, Africa has a dependable ally.
Representing President & Chairman, African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), Prof. Benedict Okey Oramah, Executive Vice President, Intra-African Trade, African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) Mrs Kanayo Awani, said “I am grateful to the African International Trade Exhibition (AITE) for the kind opportunity to participate in this event. I congratulate AITE for building this unique platform to rally global investments and policy support towards the attainment of the goals of the African Continental Free Trade Agreements.
