Programme Director and Chairperson of the Export Credit Insurance Corporation, Ms Delia Ndlovu;
Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition, Mr Parks Tau;
Ministers and Deputy Ministers;
Former Deputy President Baleka Mbete;
President of the Afrexim Bank, Dr George Elombi;
Former President of Afrexim Bank, Professor Benedict Oramah;
Members of the Board and Technical Team;
Representatives of business and organised labour;
Distinguished guests;
Ladies and gentlemen;

Good Morning.

Today we mark a major milestone in our quest to realise the economic integration of our continent.

South Africa’s accession to the Africa Export‑Import Bank affirms our commitment to African industrial development and to deepening trade, investment and development across the continent.

Once finalised, the South Africa‑Afreximbank Country Programme will be operationalised with a finance package that will initially support a range of strategic projects across the trade and industrial cluster.

The programme will inject capital into priority industrial projects, export diversification, infrastructure development and transformation initiatives.

Today’s signing signals a deliberate, ambitious and more impactful phase in South Africa’s economic engagement with Africa and the world.

For South Africa, the decision to accede to Afreximbank represents a strategic alignment.

We seek to contribute to an Africa that prioritises intra‑continental trade, that builds its own industrial base, and that mobilises African financial institutions to support development.

For more than 30 years, Afreximbank has demonstrated resilience, innovation and impact. It has developed a diversified portfolio across geographies and sectors.

This partnership will strengthen South Africa’s ability to support exporters, industrial projects and regional value chains, while advancing continental development.

South Africa accedes to Afreximbank at a time of both challenge and opportunity for the continent.

Global economic uncertainties, climate risks and shifting trade patterns underscore the need for building economic resilience.

As a country, we are implementing far‑reaching reforms to restore growth, improve competitiveness and expand inclusion.

We are working to accelerate economic growth by implementing structural reforms, increasing infrastructure investment and through targeted industrial policy.

As we accede to the Establishment Agreement today, we do so with a clear understanding that membership alone is not the objective.

What matters is how this partnership is translated into practical instruments that expand productive capacity, diversify our exports and integrate more South Africans into regional and global value chains.

South Africa’s industrialisation path is anchored by three mutually‑reinforcing pillars: decarbonisation, diversification and digitisation.

We are pursuing an energy transition that balances climate imperatives with developmental realities; that builds new industrial capabilities and creates new jobs.

That is why we are investing in renewable energy, green hydrogen, sustainable fuels and climate‑resilient infrastructure.

That is why we are focused on beneficiating critical minerals for clean energy technologies.

These are sectors where African countries hold competitive advantage.

They are sectors where long‑term project finance, guarantees and blended instruments are essential to unlocking scale.

Diversifying both our export basket and our exporter base is key to our economic growth strategy.

We are shifting toward higher‑value, more complex exports in advanced manufacturing, green industries, critical minerals beneficiation, pharmaceuticals and the digital economy.

Through the African Continental Free Trade Area we are working to build African value chains that anchor production on the continent and strengthen Africa’s economic sovereignty.

Afreximbank’s instruments — from trade finance and project preparation to risk mitigation and market access support — are indispensable in turning this vision into reality.

They will help to lower barriers to entry, reduce transaction costs and support South African firms as they expand into new African markets.

Through the Afreximbank Inclusive Development Support Programme for South Africa, a dedicated facility has been set aside to address structural barriers that have historically excluded many South Africans from participating in trade and industrialisation.

As a country we are working to enable new and emerging exporters to participate meaningfully in trade – particularly small and medium enterprises, black industrialists, and women‑ and youth‑owned firms.

This programme will enable black businesses and entrepreneurs to access finance, build assets and participate in strategic sectors.

Today’s accession brings us a step closer towards the incubation of a South African Export–Import Bank.

Working closely with Afreximbank, and building on the experience of our Export Credit Insurance Corporation, we are laying the foundations for a national institution that will support exporters, crowd in investment and provide financing aligned to our industrial priorities.

This is a strategic investment in our ability to compete and to support South African firms across the export lifecycle.

It will help to ensure that our participation in African and global trade is sustained, resilient and developmental.

Allow me to conclude by acknowledging the leadership that has brought us to this moment.

We welcome Dr George Elombi, President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Afreximbank, whose stewardship marks a new chapter in the Bank’s evolution.

We recognise Professor Benedict Oramah, former President of AfreximBank, under whose visionary leadership the process of South Africa’s accession was initiated and advanced.

Your contribution to building Afreximbank into a formidable continental institution laid much of the foundations for the partnership we formalise today.

The continuity of leadership reflects the strength and maturity of Afreximbank as a Pan‑African institution.

Finally, we thank Minister Parks Tau for his central role in advancing South Africa’s trade and industrial agenda.

Today, as we sign this Instrument of Accession, we do so with clarity of purpose and confidence.

Let this moment mark not only South Africa’s full membership of Afreximbank, but the activation of a partnership that delivers growth, transformation and opportunity for our country and for our continent.

I thank you.

Programme Director,
Minister of Human Settlements, Ms Thembisile Simelane,
Ministers and Deputy Ministers,
Premiers,
Leaders of industry, labour and civil society,
Representatives of academia, research institutions and professional bodies,
Development finance partners,
Guests,
Ladies and gentlemen,
 
Good Morning.

It is a great pleasure to address this critical gathering, which places the built environment at the centre of human development.

The right to adequate housing is a basic human right, reflected both in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and in our own Constitution.

Having shelter that provides privacy, safety and freedom is inextricably bound to human dignity.

Housing is not merely about shelter, but it is about belonging, security and opportunity.

South Africa, like many countries in the world, faces a growing demand for housing.

Since 1994, the democratic Government has been able to provide more than 5 million housing opportunities.

This achievement stands among the most ambitious social programmes on our continent. It has transformed millions of lives.

Yet, despite this progress, more than 2.5 million families are today still on the waiting list for housing throughout the country.

Inadequate supply, limited land availability, rising construction costs and delays in project delivery are all contributing to a situation of scarcity.

This has a number of consequences.

For the middle class, prices and rents are being pushed upwards.

For the poor, homelessness and the proliferation of informal settlements are exacerbating already dire conditions.

The delivery of basic services to unplanned settlements is stretching the capacity and the resources of the State.

Rapid urbanisation, population growth, migration and climate change are reshaping our human settlements on an unprecedented scale.

It is estimated that by 2050, nearly eight out of every ten South Africans will live in cities.

Many will live in informal settlements, often located on land vulnerable to floods, drought, heat stress and environmental degradation.

In recent years, many parts of our country have borne the brunt of climate change.

It is always the poorest and most vulnerable who suffer first and who suffer most.

If we continue to build in the old way – on the same land, with the same vulnerabilities, using the same methods – then we are not solving the housing challenge.

We must make a change.

We must embrace the tide of technological progress to future-proof human settlements.

This is a social imperative and an economic necessity.

The right to adequate housing must not be the sole privilege of those with money. It is an aspiration for all that our Constitution compels us to progressively realise.

This Summit has been convened because it is time to think differently.

We have to think beyond traditional brick-and-mortar.

We must embrace technological solutions that enable housing to be delivered faster, better and at scale.

This Summit brings together Government, regulators, financiers, innovators, municipalities, professional bodies, community organisations, youth formations and international partners in support of modernising human settlements.

We are united in our resolve to turn innovation into a coordinated national pathway for housing delivery at scale.

We are learning from global experience while building solutions that are locally embedded, socially accepted and owned by our people.

At the G20 Leaders’ Summit held in Johannesburg in November last year, South Africa reaffirmed a principle that now defines leadership in the 21st Century.

We said that resilience is not merely the ability to recover. It is the foresight to prepare.

Resilience is about choices made before disaster strikes.

It is about building systems that protect lives, conserve resources and endure over time.

Resilient human settlements require such foresight.

Buildings are among the world’s largest sources of carbon emissions and resource consumption.

Traditional construction methods, while familiar and trusted, are no longer sustainable on their own.

Water scarcity, rising energy costs, climate risk and the urgency of scale demand that we modernise how we build.

Innovative building technologies offer us a strategic opportunity.

When appropriately regulated, financed, socially accepted and locally embedded, innovative building technologies allow us to build faster and at scale.

They enable us to reduce carbon emissions and water use, improve energy efficiency, and enhance durability and quality.

Innovative building technologies are an essential part of a diversified, modern construction system capable of meeting today’s challenges.

In South Africa, innovation in construction takes place within an established regulatory framework.

Agrément South Africa provides rigorous scientific and technical certification of innovation systems while the National Home Builders Registration Council safeguards quality, compliance and consumer protection during implementation.

Together, these institutions ensure that innovation strengthens public trust.

Innovation without standards erodes confidence, while innovation with oversight builds legitimacy.

The 2024 White Paper on Human Settlements provides the policy foundation for the innovative shift we need to make.

It calls for resilient building typologies, sustainable local materials, rapid emergency housing responses and stronger partnerships across society.

At the heart of this Summit is a Social Compact on Innovative Building Technologies.

This Compact represents a shared national commitment to move innovative building technologies from pilot projects and demonstrations into the mainstream of South Africa’s human settlements.

The Compact aligns policy and planning, regulation and standards, finance and insurance, research and skills development, and implementation across all spheres of Government.

Most importantly, it establishes shared responsibility and accountability.

The Innovative Building Technologies Programme focuses on areas where impact is most urgent.

These areas include disaster recovery and emergency housing, climate-resilient settlements, energy-efficient and water-saving technologies, and local manufacturing and supply chains.

Scaling innovation requires confidence from financiers and insurers.

Through the Social Compact, Government, development finance institutions, banks and insurers have committed to align funding instruments, de-risk these projects, and recognise certified IBT housing as financeable and insurable assets.

Without this alignment, innovation stalls.

As we proceed along this path, we need to address concerns that these innovative building technologies will cost jobs.

We must work together to protect jobs. We must draw on the international experience that shows that innovation does not eliminate work, but rather transforms it.

International experience shows bricklayers becoming technicians, contractors becoming manufacturers, and communities becoming producers, not just beneficiaries.

Innovative building technologies enable us to align housing delivery with technical training, artisan development, digital skills and local manufacturing.

Through this, we must provide opportunities for young people in particular to learn and to work.

We must use this transition to address the persistent exclusion of women from the built environment sector.

Through targeted procurement, access to finance and support for women-owned enterprises and cooperatives, innovative building technologies can create space for women as entrepreneurs, innovators and leaders.

Inclusion must also be built into the design of our settlements.

For persons with disabilities, housing is about access, independence and dignity.

Innovative building technologies allow universal design principles to be integrated from the outset, not retrofitted as an afterthought.

This Summit is a commitment to action.

The Social Compact will guide coordinated implementation, supported by structured governance, monitoring and accountability.

Delivery is now the measure of our seriousness.

Resilience is the difference between recovery and repeated loss, between dignity and displacement, between success and failure.

We have the technology to build for the present and to be prepared for the future.

Now we need leadership. We need partnerships.

We need to be creative.

We need to build faster and better.

Let us work together to build a resilient, inclusive South Africa which is a home to all our people, and in which all our people have a decent home.

I thank you.

President Cyril Ramaphosa will on Wednesday , 04 February 2026, deliver an address at the signing of the Instrument of Accession by South Africa to the Establishment Agreement of the African Export–Import Bank (Afreximbank). 

The signing ceremony marks South Africa’s formal transition to Class A Shareholder status in Afreximbank and signals the activation of a strategic partnership aimed at advancing industrial development, export-led growth, and deeper intra-African trade integration.

Afreximbank is a pan-African multilateral financial institution that facilitates, promotes and expands intra- and extra-African trade.

The bank is a key player in financing the continent's economic development and industrialisation.  

The ceremony will be attended by the President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Afreximbank, Dr George Elombi; members of the Bank’s Board and management; Ministers, senior government officials, captains of industry and representatives of the diplomatic corps. 

The partnership with Afreximbank is expected to support priority areas including industrial competitiveness, transformation and inclusive growth, as well as the expansion of intra-African trade and investment. 

Sovereign membership offers South African companies, commercial banks as well as State Owned Enterprises (SOEs), more competitive trade finance; expanded funding for trade activities under the AfCFTA; greater participation in cross-border projects and investments; increased partnerships and cooperation with other African financial institutions, and access to various risk mitigation tools. 

President Ramaphosa will deliver the keynote address, outlining South Africa’s vision for industrialisation, export diversification, decarbonisation, and digitisation, as well as the country’s role in advancing Africa’s economic integration in line with the bank’s strategic mandate.

President Ramaphosa will address and officiate the signing ceremony of the Instrument of Accession by the Republic of South Africa to the Establishment Agreement of the African Export–Import Bank (Afreximbank) as follows: 
Date: Wednesday, 4 February 2026 
Venue: The Westcliff Hotel, Johannesburg 
Time: 08:00 - 10:00 am 

Members of the media who wish to attend the session are advised to RSVP by sending  details to Khutjo Sebata on Khutjo@presidency.gov.za/079 898 4621  or Phumzile Kotane on pkotane@thedtic.gov.za/071 462 8246  by 14h00 on Tuesday , 03 February 2026. 

Media enquiries: Vincent Magwenya, Spokesperson to the President – media@presidency.gov.za

Issued by: The Presidency
Pretoria