Many of the early gains in TMA’s trade facilitation portfolio came from investments in physical infrastructure, not least the reductions in dwell
times at Mombasa port from 21 to four days in the decade to 2021, as well as significant reductions in border crossing times. However, the resources available for such infrastructure have diminished, and yet the trade infrastructure gap remains substantial.

Another critical blockage to trade, especially restricting exports from Africa, is the limited access to trade finance. This restricts the growth of SMEs, which account for around 80% of the region’s businesses. TMA has therefore created TCA as a catalytic capital facility, to pilot new commercial models for creating trade infrastructure.

TCA will help expand the scale of TMA’s impact by complementing its portfolio with commercially sustainable solutions. TCA will also provide supply chain financing to enable micro, small and medium enterprises in Africa to trade more easily.