Central bank governors from Uganda, Swaziland, Ghana, Kenya, South Sudan and Equatorial Guinea have shown interest in forging closer economic ties with Israel
Last week saw a series of meetings and discussion between the bank governors and banking leaders in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv to initiate financial tie ups between the African nations and Israel.
The meetings formed part of the "Africa's Voices in Israel" inaugural mission, which was led by prominent New York businessman Michael Landau and sponsored by the IDT Corporation.
Central Bank governor of Swaziland, Professor Martin Dlamini, said, "As we are an agriculture-dependent economy, it is important for us to meet with agricultural innovators in Israel and business people who would be willing to invest in developing our agricultural market.
"This venture will strengthen the relationship between Israel, Swaziland and other African nations by creating grassroot-level efforts in the fields of agriculture and finance," Dlamini added.
Israel National Economic Council head Professor Eugene Kandel said, "Israel has a record of overcoming adversity and turning it into opportunity. The country is a perfect model for developing countries in the areas of agriculture, banking security and water technology."
Ron Dermer, senior advisor to Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, noted, "We hope that this mission will help forge a new set of alliances between Israel and Africa. For banks within developing countries, Israel's expertise in cyber-security will allow African banks to make a critical financial jump forward."
Governor of the Bank of Israel, Professor Stanley Fischer, explained that Israel had yielded consistent positive economic growth, even at a time when Europe and the USA had experienced recession.
Professor Fischer remarked, "We are here to listen and offer our advice to African banking systems, based on various experiences."
