KINGSTON, Jamaica — For Jamaican businesses looking for capital to expand, export or modernise production, the African Export-Import Bank’s (Afreximbank) deeper push into Jamaica could become more than another diplomatic engagement.

It could give local companies another route to financing.

The bank held its first Jamaica roadshow on June 2 at the AC Hotel in Kingston, bringing its trade finance, investment and advisory products directly to local businesses, financial institutions and Government officials.

The roadshow followed Jamaica’s signing of Afreximbank’s partnership agreement in July 2025 and the later approval of a US$5-billion financing facility for the Caribbean, including Jamaica.

For businesses, the issue is practical. Many companies do not only need customers. They need capital to buy equipment, expand factory space, meet export orders, improve logistics, upgrade tourism properties or move from small-scale production to larger commercial operations.

Afreximbank is positioning itself as one possible financing partner for that kind of growth.

The bank is a pan-African multilateral financial institution that finances and promotes trade within Africa and between Africa and other markets. Its Caribbean engagement forms part of what it calls the Global Africa agenda, which seeks to strengthen commercial ties between Africa, the Caribbean and the wider diaspora.

Finance and Public Service Minister Fayval Williams, who delivered the keynote address at the roadshow, said Jamaica’s partnership with the bank continues to strengthen.

“We understand that, for more than three decades, Afreximbank has been delivering financing solutions that support trade and drive economic growth across Africa. Its reach now extends beyond the continent’s shores, with the Bank establishing a growing presence in the Caribbean,” Williams said.

“It is clear that the partnership between Afreximbank and Jamaica continues to strengthen. I therefore encourage all Jamaican institutions represented here today to deepen their engagement with Afreximbank so that, together, we can unlock greater opportunities for two-way trade and investment between Jamaica and Africa,” she added.

For Jamaica, the attraction is not simply that another international financial institution is showing interest. It is that Afreximbank is offering products that could support trade finance, investment capital, advisory services, manufacturing, tourism, hospitality, industrial parks and special economic zones.

That matters because trade growth is difficult without production capacity.

A manufacturer trying to export more may need financing for machinery, packaging, certification, working capital and larger production runs. A hospitality operator may need capital to renovate, expand or reposition a property. A logistics or agro-processing business may need funding to handle bigger volumes, meet new standards or serve regional customers.

In each case, the financing question comes before the export question.

Eric Monchu Intong, Afreximbank’s group managing director for client relations and regional office operations, said industrialisation must be at the centre of deeper trade.

“At Afreximbank, we believe that industrialisation is the foundation of sustainable trade and economic transformation. To trade successfully with Global Africa, we must first produce,” Intong said.

“Through investments in industrial parks, special economic zones and local manufacturing, Jamaica has an opportunity to reduce import dependence, increase value-added exports, create jobs and strengthen its economic resilience. This approach has delivered results across 18 African countries,” he added.

That is where the opportunity and the test meet.

Afreximbank is not only pitching more Africa-Caribbean trade. It is also pointing to the need for more factories, more value-added production, more export-ready companies and stronger investment platforms.

But financing alone will not solve that.

Jamaican businesses still need bankable projects, proper financial records, clear expansion plans, credible partners and the capacity to meet larger orders. Public agencies and local financial institutions may also have to help determine whether smaller firms can access the facilities directly or whether the financing will mainly flow through banks, larger companies and Government-backed projects.

That question matters for small and medium-sized businesses.

If access is too complex, the benefit may be limited to large firms and major projects. But if the financing can be channelled through local institutions or structured around export-ready businesses, it could widen the pool of companies able to participate in Africa-Caribbean trade.

The US$5-billion Caribbean facility gives the relationship scale. But the money will only matter if it reaches projects that create output, jobs, exports and stronger trade links.

For Jamaica, the opening is clear: another financing source at a time when companies are trying to grow beyond the local market.

The next question is whether businesses are ready to use it.