Guinea signs Accra convention to finance SMEs
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Africaguinée
Guinea signed the United Nations Convention on Negotiable Cargo Documents in Accra, represented by its Minister of Industry and Trade, Aboubacar Kourouma. Once ratified and implemented, the instrument is intended to secure trade and facilitate SMEs’ access to financing, according to Guinean authorities.
Guinea signed the United Nations Convention on Negotiable Cargo Documents in Accra on Monday 26 October 2026, aimed at facilitating financing for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Guinea’s Minister of Industry and Trade, Aboubacar Kourouma, signed the text on behalf of the Republic of Guinea, according to Africaguinée.
Once ratified and implemented, the convention is intended to streamline international trade, secure transactions and allow goods in transit to be used as collateral with banks. It extends the negotiability of cargo documents to sea, road, rail and air transport, whereas this had mainly been associated with the maritime bill of lading.
The framework also recognises the legal equivalence of electronic and paper documents under the terms of the convention. It is therefore intended to facilitate transactions involving goods transported by several modes and better regulate the transfer of rights over those goods, with expected effects for businesses, banks, insurers and logistics operators.
The signing follows Guinea’s efforts to support financing for African SMEs, after its participation in the Governors’ Caucus on financing for African SMEs on 14 October. It also comes after the World Bank granted Guinea $320.8 million, announced on 5 October.
