Audit slams US EXIM for weak performance in Africa

(Semafor, Legos, 23 May 2024) A scathing evaluation of the US Export-Import bank’s uneven approach to supporting US trade with sub-Saharan Africa has put its management on the backfoot. It comes the bank scrambles to make the opposite case with a slew of recent deal announcements. The report from the Office of the US Inspector General said the export credit agency had failed to expand its performance to achieve its sub-Saharan Africa mandate and in fact declined over the evaluation period from 2014 to 2023. It also found that, despite multiple Exim officials taking initiatives related to the region, there was no specific program or office designated with the responsibility. A senior Exim official pushed back at the report for not providing “a comprehensive picture of our efforts” in the region where it has a total exposure of over $8 billion.