AfriCaribbean Forum Yields $300m in Trade, Investment Deals as Africa-CARICOM Ties Deepen
ACTIF2025 ends with bold commitments on trade, visa-free movement, digital integration, and a new era of Afro-Caribbean economic convergence.
The Fourth AfriCaribbean Trade and Investment Forum (ACTIF2025) closed with a resounding signal of renewed Afro-Caribbean solidarity—culminating in over $300 million worth of trade and investment deals across infrastructure, tourism, digital transformation, and trade finance.
According to a statement by Vincent Musumba, Communications and Events Manager at Afreximbank, eight landmark agreements and memoranda of understanding were signed during the two-day summit, co-hosted by the Government of Grenada and Afreximbank.
The AfriCaribbean Forum brought together an impressive 2,100 delegates from over 80 countries—including 11 Heads of State and Government, top private sector leaders, and international development partners—positioning ACTIF2025 as a major pivot point in reengineering economic and diplomatic linkages between Africa and the Caribbean.
Beyond Rhetoric: Building Institutions for Global Africa
In a rousing closing statement at the AfriCaribbean Forum, Grenada’s Prime Minister, Hon. Dickon Mitchell, declared an urgent need for purpose-built institutions that support Africa-Caribbean mutual prosperity:
“We must deliberately build the kind of trade, investment, banking, and financial institutions that serve our shared vision. What existed before was designed to entrap us.”
He also challenged the legacy visa regimes that inhibit mobility across both regions, urging for frictionless movement powered by modern biometric technologies:
“There is no valid reason for maintaining these visa systems. Biometrics allow us to evolve beyond them.”
Financial Integration as the Engine of Unity
Dr. George Elombi, Afreximbank’s Executive Vice-President and incoming President, emphasized that belief and decisive action are now critical for turning vision into reality:
“Finance is the lifeline of trade. Once we integrate our payment systems and position the Caribbean as the unique opportunity it is, everything else will follow.”
His remarks underscore Afreximbank’s increasing role in transforming talk into tangible frameworks for intra-African and Afro-Caribbean economic integration.
Key Outcomes from ACTIF2025
The event concluded with a detailed communiqué laying out concrete action points:
- $300m+ in deals across strategic sectors
- Visa-free movement and people-to-people integration
- Call for a Free Trade Arrangement between Africa and the Caribbean
- Air and maritime link development to boost logistics and tourism
- Expansion of digital, sports, and creative economy partnerships
- Support for the Global Africa Commission, now endorsed by Grenada, St. Kitts and Nevis, and the OECS
The communiqué also proposed formal ratification of the Global Africa Commission at the upcoming AU–CARICOM Summit scheduled for September in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
ACTIF Platform to Continue—ACTIF2026 Announced
With the 2025 edition seen as a watershed moment, stakeholders reaffirmed the ACTIF platform’s relevance by confirming ACTIF2026. The forum will continue to serve as a bridge between Africa and the Caribbean, anchoring new supply chains and investment flows across the Atlantic.
Honouring a Pan-African Titan: Prof. Benedict Oramah
The event paid glowing tribute to outgoing Afreximbank President Prof. Benedict Oramah, whose leadership helped actualize the Global Africa vision. A symbolic Flamboyant Tree—a botanical emblem of vitality and growth native to both Africa and the Caribbean—was planted in his honour at Camerhogne Park, Grenada.
The act commemorates his indelible contributions to fostering a globally interconnected African diaspora.
Why It Matters: ACTIF as Catalyst for Continental and Diasporic Integration
In the face of shifting global trade patterns and rising South–South cooperation, ACTIF2025 reinforces a shared destiny between Africa and the Caribbean. By anchoring economic relations in infrastructure, digitalisation, creative industries, and human mobility, the forum is reshaping centuries-old divides into new value chains.
For investors, development experts, and policy strategists, the message is clear: Global Africa is not just a concept—it is now an economic, cultural, and geopolitical force in motion.
