By Godson Umejiego, Correspondent USA

In our 27-year history as a Chamber of Business, the latest range of risk insurance instruments from the African Trade Insurance (ATI) Agency is a major leap forward for Canadian institutional investors and African countries – standing to unlock billions in investment capital.

ATI facilitates inward investment in Africa by providing insurance against trade and investment risks. This month the organization joined The Canada-Africa Chamber of Business.

‘ATI is a game-changer. From discussions with private equity and pension fund representatives, ATI has the potential to ensure both the perceived and real risks on the continent are well-managed; ensuring investment committees can proceed on deals that until recently may have been deemed too risky,’ says Chair of the Board, Chair of the Board at The Canada-Africa Chamber of Business, Sebastian Spio-Garbrah.

ATI has a good market position in Africa, based on the scale of its underwriting penetration and benefits from significant local expertise and understanding in a number of African countries. It currently insures trade and investments worth over USD6 billion or an average of 1-2 per cent of GDP annually in its African member countries. ATI’s partners and clients include African Governments, lenders, traders (both domestic & international) and project developers.

“It has become increasingly clear that to achieve “the Africa we want” the role of private sector must become central in mobilizing the needed resources. Alliances like this one present excellent opportunities to address the development challenges facing our region,” Commented Chief Executive Officer, ATI, Manuel Moses.

“During my career on Bay Street, it was clear solutions were needed to unlock the billions of investable capital in Canada. ATI has since developed a suite of products that in my view has dramatically changed the landscape in recent years,” said Chief Risk Officer, ATI, Deepak Dave.

ATI’s African Member states contribute, along with international governments, multilaterals and private sector to the pool of capital underwriting investments, without holding any influence over ATI operations. The Nairobi-based multilateral has maintained an ‘A/Stable’ rating for Financial Strength and Counterparty Credit by Standard & Poor’s, and in 2019, ATI obtained an A3/Stable rating from Moody’s.