African businesses are urged to adopt a continental bond guarantee scheme to combat significant annual losses from inefficient transit systems. The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Single Bond Guarantee Scheme aims to reduce trade risks and delays, potentially saving the continent $300 million annually, with total savings possibly reaching $1 billion.

• The scheme, supported by Afreximbank's $300 million guarantee pool, allows traders to use a single insurance-backed bond for cross-border movement, eliminating costly individual guarantees.
• Dr. Gainmore Zanamwe, Director of Trade Facilitation and Promotion at Afreximbank, highlighted that companies can lose up to 60 cents of every dollar due to high transit costs.
• The scheme is already showing success in pilot regions like East Africa (including Kenya), reducing transit times and improving competitiveness.