The Story⚡
Lavaille Lavette, a veteran publishing and production executive, has been appointed CEO following Afreximbank’s official launch of its $1 billion Pan-African Film Fund aimed at supporting African content creation and global distribution.
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The Cairo-based African Export-Import Bank, known as Afreximbank, established the fund through its development impact investment arm, the Fund for Export Development in Africa (FEDA). The initiative aims to provide financing across content production, infrastructure, and distribution using equity, quasi-equity, and structured financing solutions.
The fund will focus on commercially viable, export-oriented projects with potential for global distribution. It plans to work with studios, streaming platforms, and other distributors to help African content reach wider audiences. In addition to production support, it will address key gaps in the industry by financing improvements in global distribution networks, digital streaming and exhibition platforms, and the development of production studios and post-production facilities across the continent.
Lavette brings extensive experience to the role. She serves as Managing Partner at One Street Studios and co-founded JVL Media with Academy Award winner Viola Davis and producer Julius Tennon. FEDA and One Street Studios will act as Co-General Partners of the fund.
In a statement, Lavette described the launch as a significant step for Africa’s creative sectors, noting that the fund will mobilize long-term capital to support creators, build production capacity, and create sustainable pathways for African stories to reach global markets.
Afreximbank, founded in 1993 and headquartered in Cairo, maintains regional offices in Zimbabwe, Ivory Coast, Uganda, Nigeria, Cameroon, and Barbados. The bank has previously supported projects such as Arie and Chuko Esiri’s film Clarissa, which premiered in the Quinzaine des Cinéastes section at Cannes and is scheduled for distribution by Neon later this year.
In Summary
The $1 billion Pan-African Film Fund offers structured financing to strengthen African film production, infrastructure, and international distribution. The initiative connects capital, industry expertise, and strategic partnerships to support sustainable growth in the continent’s creative sector.
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