Zikalala Welcomes the Appointment of the New Afreximbank President

Article and Pictures by Bukiwe Cimela

27 October 2025

Public Works and Infrastructure Deputy Minister Sihle Zikalala has welcomed the appointment and swearing in of Dr George Elombi as the new Afreximbank President. Dr Elombi’s appointment was celebrated over during a two day conference held in Cairo, Egypt. Elombi takes over from Prof Benedict Oramah, who ended his second and final term at the helm of the organisation on a high note.

During Oramah’s tenure as President at Afreximbank, the bank signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure though Infrastructure South Africa (ISA) to establish a joint project preparation facility. In the agreement, Afreximbank has committed just below R90m for the collaboration, which will be for projects in energy, transport and logistics and digital infrastructure.

Sending his congratulatory message, Deputy Minister Zikalala said Dr Elombi’s priorities at the bank resonates with South Africa’s focus in industrialisation and investment in infrastructure as an enabler for economic growth. Zikalala said this is where the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure would like to further strengthen the already existing relationship to make sure that more infrastructure projects are funded, thus creating much needed jobs.

The Deputy Minister also paid homage to the Elombi’s predecessor, Professor Oramah, who anchored the bank’s relationship with South Africa.

The conference was attended by government leaders in the continent, different industry leaders and practitioners, academic leaders and investors. Joining Deputy Minister Zikalala was the South Africa’s Ambassador to Egypt, HE NtsikiMashimbye and different South African organisation leaders.