The Trade and Development Bank Group (TDB Group) and China Development Bank (CDB) convened today, at TDB Tower in Nairobi, the China-Africa Interbank Association (CAIBA) 2026 Senior Officials Meeting, as well as the China-Africa Development Finance Forum.
The CAIBA Senior Officials Meeting focused on the deepening of financial and development cooperation between members – in line with the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation Beijing Action Plan (2025-2027) adopted at the 2024 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), where the importance of information sharing and business cooperation through CAIBA was reaffirmed.
The Forum which was held following the meeting brought together several other financial institutions, enterprises and development partners to discuss financial innovation and trade cooperation. In this context, dynamic discussions were held in support of the enhancement of China-Africa economic and trade ties, with special attention to infrastructure, SME development and RMB financing.
The China-Africa Inter Bank Association (CAIBA) was jointly established by the China Development Bank (CDB) and a select group of African commercial banks and Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) in 2018, during FOCAC in Beijing, China – to foster financial cooperation and enhance economic ties between China and Africa. Since then, financial cooperation has continued to advance between CAIBA members, paving the way for stronger partnerships in several areas such as infrastructure connectivity, SME development, and international cooperation.
Following its extension of zero-tariff treatment to all least developed countries (LDCs) in 2024, China will grant zero-tariff access for 100 percent of tariff lines to 53 African countries beginning on 1 of May 2026. China has been Africa’s largest trading partner for over a decade and a half, with bilateral trade estimated at US$ 348 billion in 2025, while cumulative Chinese investment in Africa since the launch of FOCAC are reported to have reached US$ 50 billion as of 2024. China-Africa relations are now moving toward broader and more diversified cooperation and are expected to further develop with unilateral market access, streamlined customs procedures, and the African Continental Free Trade Area which has been gaining momentum.
Admassu Tadesse, TDB Group President and Managing Director said “To support this growth and in line with our funding diversification strategy, we have been actively positioning ourselves to support the mobilisation of capital from various money centres and funding partners, including from China. We already enjoy fruitful collaborations with a number of Chinese partners, and to support further developments, we have recently received our inaugural AAA investment grade ratings with a stable outlook from China Chengxin International Credit Ratings Co., Ltd. (CCXI).”
Wang Peng, CDB Vice Executive President said “Guided by the Belt and Road Initiative and the spirit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, CDB has been deeply integrated into the African market, leaving tangible impact in sectors such as infrastructure development, SME growth, and integration of industrial chains and supply chains. CDB will join hands with all partners, with broader vision, more robust measures, and more flexible approaches, to deepen financial cooperation, inject strong financial momentum into building a new era of China-Africa community with a shared future.”
Building on Chinese investments already deployed on the continent, and in particular in infrastructure, the evolving China-Africa partnership is poised to unlock new opportunities and catalyse value-added growth on both sides across multiple sectors, including in more labour-intensive industries. Deeper financial collaboration between Chinese and African financial institutions, as is promoted by CAIBA, will be instrumental in supporting the momentum.
About TDB Group
Established in 1985, the Trade and Development Bank Group (TDB Group) is an African regional multilateral development bank group, with the mandate to finance and foster trade, regional economic integration, and sustainable development in Africa. TDB Group counts several subsidiaries and strategic business units including Trade and Development Banking, TDB Asset Management (TAM), the Trade and Development Fund (TDF), TDB Captive Insurance Company (TCI), the ESATAL trade asset management company and TDB Academy.
www.tdbgroup.org
About CDB
Established in 1994, the China Development Bank is a state-funded and state-owned development finance institution. CDB has 37 primary and 4 secondary branches on the Chinese mainland, one branch in Hong Kong, and 11overseas representative offices in foreign cities including Cairo, Moscow, Rio de Janeiro, Caracas, London, Vientiane, Astana, Minsk, Jakarta, Sydney and Budapest. Its subsidiaries include CDB Capital, CDB Securities, CDB Leasing, China-Africa Development Fund, CDB Development Fund and CDB Infrastructure Fund.
About CAIBA
The China-Africa Inter Bank Association (CAIBA) was jointly established by the China Development Bank (CDB) and a select group of African commercial banks and Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) in 2018, during the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in Beijing, China – to foster financial cooperation and enhance economic ties between China and Africa. CAIBA members include: CDB, Trade and Development Bank Group (TDB Group), West African Development Bank (BOAD), Central African States Development Bank (BDEAC), Rawbank, Banque Misr, Equity Group Holdings Limited, SBM Holdings, Attijariwafa Bank, Banco Comercial e de Investimentos (BCI), First Bank of Nigeria Limited, United Bank for Africa Plc, Standard Bank of South Africa, ABSA Group Limited, Ecobank Transnational Incorporated, and Uganda Development Bank.