PAN-AFRICAN multilateral lender African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has reached a major milestone in its institutional evolution, achieving registration with the internationally recognised ISO 31000:2018 Risk Management Standard.
The certification was awarded by the global accreditation body, Certification Partner Global (CPG).
This registration, issued in November 2025, follows a rigorous independent audit of the Bank’s enterprise risk management framework, which concluded with zero non-conformities.
The achievement places the multilateral financial institution among the world’s leading development banks and financial institutions that adhere to this prestigious standard.
The ISO 31000:2018 standard, developed by the International Organisation for Standardisation, is the globally accepted benchmark for risk management. It provides comprehensive principles and guidelines for designing, governing, implementing, and evaluating risk management across an organisation.
The registration confirms that Afreximbank’s framework meets these international best practices while navigating the unique complexities of operating across its 54 African member states and the Caribbean Community.
“Attaining ISO 31000:2018 registration is not just about global recognition; it represents years of deliberate investment in building institutional capacity and embedding a proactive risk culture throughout our organization,” said Elias Kagumya, group managing director, risk management & chief risk officer at Afreximbank.
“As a treaty-based institution with a US$45 billion balance sheet supporting African trade across diverse markets, we recognise that effective risk management is fundamental to delivering our mandate.
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“This feat assures our stakeholders – member states, commercial banks, investors, and the businesses we serve – that we operate with the same risk maturity as the world's leading financial institutions.”
Kagumya explained that the Risk Management Framework provides a bank-wide approach to managing risks and safeguarding the Bank’s goals.
“By carefully identifying, understanding, and monitoring risks across all areas of its operations, from business strategy to environmental and mandate-related issues, the framework ensures that key programmes, platforms, and financial tools are managed in a stable and well-controlled manner.”
This accreditation aligns directly with a key pillar of Afreximbank’s Strategic Plan VI – ‘Building a Mature Risk Management Framework’ – and reflects the Bank’s ongoing commitment to improving governance, transparency, and operational standards.
The process began in 2025 with a comprehensive benchmarking project of its Enterprise Risk Management framework against the ISO standard, conducted in partnership with CPG.
The certification delivers tangible benefits. It strengthens stakeholder confidence by demonstrating the maturity of the Bank’s risk systems and its commitment to continuous improvement.
It promotes a stronger, entity-wide risk culture, encouraging proactive risk identification and mitigation across Afreximbank’s complex operating environment.
The standard also provides a structured guide for integrating risk considerations into strategic planning, financial decisions, and project management, supporting more informed decision-making.
Further, it creates efficiency gains through formal guidelines for monitoring and improving risk practices, enhances reporting tools, and strengthens the Bank’s overall control environment.
CPG stated that Afreximbank’s Risk Management Framework represents a comprehensive and sophisticated approach to enterprise-wide risk governance.
“The Bank has demonstrated exceptional capability in identifying, assessing, treating, and monitoring risks across its diverse strategic programmes, platforms, and core instruments through a well-structured risk universe that addresses nine critical risk categories; from strategy and business risk to mandate risk,” the body noted.
“This framework's alignment with international best practices reflects the Bank's commitment to robust risk governance and positions it as a leader in institutional risk management within the global financial services landscape. We are pleased to certify this framework, which provides a solid foundation for Afreximbank to pursue its strategic objectives while maintaining the highest standards of risk oversight and operational resilience."
The accreditation is particularly timely as Afreximbank continues to play a central role in operationalising the African Continental Free Trade Area.
The Bank’s commitment to robust risk management underpins critical initiatives like the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System—now connecting 19 countries and over 160 commercial banks—and the Africa Trade Gateway, which is transforming cross-border commerce across the continent.
By achieving ISO 31000:2018 registration, Afreximbank reinforces its position not only as Africa’s premier trade finance institution but as a globally competitive development bank dedicated to the highest standards of institutional governance and operational excellence.
