The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has approved its biggest financing package yet for Chad, committing the equivalent of EUR 110 million in local currency to back the country’s economic development agenda.
The agreement was signed on August 5, 2026, at Afreximbank’s headquarters in Cairo, Egypt. Dr. George Elombi, the Bank’s President and Chairman of the Board of Directors, signed on behalf of Afreximbank, while Chad was represented by Senior Minister Tahir Hamid Nguilin, who oversees Finance, Budget, Economy, Planning and International Cooperation. Under the deal, the funds will go toward trade-enabling infrastructure projects that were approved as part of Chad’s 2026 Finance Law.
Afreximbank says the facility is designed to boost trade flows, strengthen the country’s economic resilience, and fund infrastructure projects considered central to Chad’s broader push for economic transformation. It also builds on the existing relationship between the Bank and the Chadian government, reinforcing efforts around local value addition, industrial growth, and regional economic development.
The financing follows a Memorandum of Understanding the two parties signed in June 2025, which laid out a cooperation framework spanning several priority areas: developing Chad’s agropastoral sector, expanding export-oriented agriculture, gold trading, improving navigability on Lake Chad, and building out refined petroleum trading and refining capacity.
Speaking on the agreement, Dr. Elombi said: “Afreximbank is pleased to be a critical actor in Chad’s economic transformation journey and commends the government for the bold agenda to structurally transform the national economy. The credit facility is part of a financing programme aimed at supporting the government to deliver on priority projects, including special industrial zones for textile manufacturing and meat processing, transport infrastructure to connect Chad to Egypt and Libya as well as power generation, creation of crude refining capacity, and creation of transport and maritime economic opportunities in Lake Chad, among others. These investments will contribute to changing the structure of the Chadian economy and create sustainable employment and wealth for the Chadian people. With these investments, we are steadily placing Africa’s development future in the hands of the African people.”
Minister Nguilin, for his part, said: “The signing of this EUR 110 million financing agreement with Afreximbank marks a major milestone in strengthening the partnership between Chad and the Bank. This financing demonstrates Afreximbank’s renewed confidence in our country’s economic prospects and its ability to harness its potential. The resources mobilized will contribute to financing critical trade-enabling projects included in our national budget, particularly in the areas of infrastructure and the development of trade.
“We are particularly committed to transforming our natural wealth and economic potential into tangible trade opportunities for our economy and our people. This transaction also reflects our determination to diversify our financial partnerships and strengthen regional and continental economic integration. The Government of Chad looks forward to continuing this dynamic partnership with Afreximbank in support of sustainable, inclusive and job-creating growth.”
Chad’s economy has been gradually shifting away from its historical dependence on crude oil revenue, with the government pursuing a mix of reforms, agricultural growth, and continued investment in the oil sector to build a more diversified and resilient economic base. That progress has not gone unnoticed internationally — the World Bank recently revised its 2026 growth forecast for Chad upward to 5.2 percent.