Who We Are

Direct African Market Solutions (DAMS) serves as a vital bridge between producers and African consumers by providing comprehensive commerce and trade solutions designed to enhance Africa’s sustainability and self-sufficiency.

DAMS creates efficient pathways for African priority products to reach local markets. With a special emphasis on staple commodities, DAMS helps African producers and importers access wider markets and suppliers, respectively, while ensuring consumers receive high-quality products at fair prices by establishing reliable trade networks and implementing innovative distribution systems in partnership with local champions to ensure food and energy security and subsequent sovereignty.

What We Do

We specialise in connecting Africa with its required resources, either from regional or global markets, while ensuring an assured market for its growing production.

We specialise in operating structured Trade Finance Facilities, in partnership with DFIs, International and National Financial Institutions and selected partners, with a proven track record, to work towards implementing steady and sustainable flows of goods to support the respective African countries’ national food & energy security agendas.

Our operating model includes strict procedures and responsibilities to address compliance, including establishing a risk committee chaired by an audit expert working together with both in-house and independent reporting mechanisms. These elements ensure accountability and systematic risk management acceptable to both financiers and stakeholders.

Our Vision

To create a self-sufficient Africa where producers and consumers are seamlessly connected through sustainable trade networks.

Our Mission

DAMS bridges African producers with local markets by establishing reliable trade pathways for essential commodities. Through structured trade finance facilities and strategic partnerships with financial institutions, we ensure food and energy security while maintaining rigorous compliance standards. Our commitment is to empower Africa’s economic sovereignty by providing commerce solutions that deliver quality products at fair prices.

Our Commitment to Excellence

At DAMS, our world-class operational standards ensure reliability, transparency, and security across every step of the supply chain. Our comprehensive risk management framework reflects our commitment to excellence.

Strategic Supplier Selection

We implement rigorous vetting processes for all suppliers, ensuring only those with proven track records participate in our ecosystem. Through competitive tender processes, we establish market-fair pricing while guaranteeing product quality. Our independent surveyors conduct thorough assessments of supplier capabilities and port facilities to maintain our exacting standards.

Quality Control & Transportation Excellence

DAMS partners with premier inspection companies to monitor product quality at every stage from origin ports through to final delivery. For shipments, we collaborate exclusively with first-tier brokers and carriers who meet our stringent reliability and insurance requirements, ensuring secure and timely transportation of vital commodities across maritime routes.

Secure Storage & Distribution Systems

Our dedicated warehousing facilities operate under strict “no co-mingling” protocols and comprehensive security systems. Each facility is fully insured and continuously monitored through multiple layers of oversight, protecting the integrity of essential commodities throughout the storage phase.

Transparent Offtake Management

We establish clear contractual frameworks with thoroughly vetted offtakers, creating predictable and reliable distribution channels. Multiple supervision layers—combining advanced technology with expert human oversight—ensure accountability at every transition point.

Our Executives

Our executives combine over 20 years of expertise from both local and global perspectives to create lasting impact across Africa.

As a world renowned expert who started commodity trading to Africa over 20 years ago, Mr. Kane worked at Continental Grain and Glencore before becoming Executive Director at Ascot Commodities and founding Novel Commodities in 1999, which became Africa’s top trader of rice, sugar, and cacao. After supporting West African nations during the 2009 food crisis, he now chairs the Intervalle Group, specializing in value chain projects that integrate both production and marketing.

With a strong academic background and over three decades in the industry, Olivier has excelled in commodity trading, finance, and risk management as CFO at Africao Trading and Novel Commodities, as Financial Vice-President at Addax & Oryx Group, and as Founding Partner and MD at Arkoil Management SA, where he consistently delivers results through his comprehensive expertise.

Armed with 30 years in collateral management, Armand ran Ace Global Depository offices in Sierra Leone and Liberia before managing West Africa risk operations from headquarters, and has spent the last decade as Business Development Officer at a prime agri-related fund management company, where he applies his specialized knowledge of agricultural commodities.

With 15 years in insurance survey and monitoring across the Mano River Union countries, Brad has developed extensive connections with Sierra Leonean stakeholders and now serves as Country Head and director of DAMS SL, where he leverages his network and expertise to guide local operations and maintain vital business relationships.

After gaining experience in agriculture value chain management with Intervalle Group in Ghana and ICT/Data Management with AgFlow, Elimane moved into rice commodity trading with Swiss-Agri Trading and successfully established their Regional Office in Cameroon (Koya SA) in 2024, where he now applies his diverse skill set to regional operations.