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AfCFTA: Free Trade Bloc can be a Game Changer for African People, Business
Exploring strategies to deepen private sector participation in the implementation African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) was the highlight of a panel session during the 2021 WTO Aid-for-Trade Stocktaking meeting.
The African Development Bank, the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and International Trade Centre (ITC) organized the session held on Wednesday 24 March.
“The success of the AfCFTA hinges on the ability of African firms to understand and capitalize on the trade related opportunities offered by the AfCFTA,” said Pamela Coke-Hamilton, International Trade Centre (ITC) Executive Director.
The Aid-for-Trade initiative – which promotes the role of trade in development and supports building productive capacities– should focus on three priorities to boost the private sector’s role in AfCFTA: empowering businesses with skills and know-how; fostering multi-stakeholder partnerships to attract investment for greater value addition and enhancing market connections using e-commerce and digital platforms, Coke-Hamilton said.
Also participating were: Mr. Alan Kyerematen, Ghana Minister of Trade and Industry; Mr. Li Yong, Director-General of UNIDO; Mr. Solomon Quaynor, African Development Bank Vice President, Industry, Infrastructure, Private Sector and Trade; Ms. Tania Rödiger-Vorwerk, Director, Private Sector, Trade, Employment and Digital Technologies in Germany’s Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development; Ms. Glwadys Tawema, CEO of Benin firm, Karethic; Mr. Emmanouil Davradakis, Senior Economist, European Investment Bank; Mr. Paul Walters, Director for Trade & Development, UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and Mr. Michael Kottoh, Head of Strategy & Research, AfroChampions.
“This is a trade area of the people, so we need to understand and engage the people to go forward and believe in this dream of an African free trade area,” said Ambassador Usha Dwarka-Canabady, Permanent Representative of Mauritius at the United Nations Office at Geneva and coordinator of the African Group at the World Trade Organization, who moderated.
Discussion focused on boosting private sector involvement in policy dialogues on trade, investment and infrastructure, strategies to increase participation by micro, small and medium enterprises, and the need for greater partnerships to attract investment in promising industries.
Kyerematen proposed that bridging information gaps between governments and the private sector would help build confidence around the free trade agreement and noted that fiscal incentives, including subsidies, might be needed in some instances.
Li emphasized the private sector’s role in speeding up industrial development and economic diversification, particularly in the context of the ongoing pandemic and other development challenges.
“The private sector accounts for 80% of total production, two thirds of investment, three-quarters of credit and employs 90% of the working age population.”
He also noted “several determining factors, including an enabling business environment, affordable connectivity, accelerated digitalization and opportunities to forge strong public-private partnerships” as crucial to ensuring businesses’ commitment to trade and invest in the AfCFTA.
The African Development Bank, UNIDO and the ITC have each engaged with the private sector at the continental, regional and sub-national level to facilitate the African business community’s access to the new single market, said Vice-President Quaynor.
The African Development Bank is actively supporting or looking to support initiatives to boost trade and improve livelihoods for Africans, Quaynor said, citing the Ethiopian Commodity Exchange as a model to be replicated across Africa, referring to the commodities exchange established in 2008 that is transforming the country’s agricultural trade.
“African farmers receive only 20-25% of the final price of their market produce, compared to the 70-85% that Asian farmers receive.”
Quaynor also named AfroChampions, a public-private partnership designed to accelerate economic integration and support the emergence of African multi-nationals, as an initiative that is making an impact.
The meeting comes in the wake of the entry into force of the AfCFTA on 1 January 2021. The free trade area brings together 1.3 billion Africans in a $3.4 trillion economic bloc.
The bloc is the largest free trade area since the establishment of the World Trade Organization, and economists project that its benefits and impacts could lift tens of millions out of poverty over the next 15 years.
Accelerating artificial intelligence (AI) adoption could increase Africa’s GDP by up to 4% over the next decade, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
In a report released on Tuesday, titled Africa Can Grow Faster With AI—If It Moves Now, economists from the IMF’s Africa Department say current levels of AI adoption and utilisation are expected to contribute just 0.2% to the region’s GDP over the next 10 years.
However, the report says stronger adoption, supported by the right infrastructure and policies, could raise the economic impact to about 4% by extending AI beyond today’s digitally connected firms.
Martin Schindler and other IMF economists say: “AI adoption in sub-Saharan Africa currently lags well behind every other region. If richer economies race ahead while African firms and governments lag, the productivity gap between the region and the rest of the world will only widen.”
Early signs of AI adoption are emerging across Africa, with countries including Zimbabwe, Kenya, Egypt and Nigeria developing AI strategies.
Telecommunications operators, including Vodacom, Econet, Africell and MTN, are also integrating AI into their operations and networks.
Other examples include chatbots supporting teaching and learning in Nigeria and the South African Revenue Service’s use of data analytics for targeted tax audits.
However, the IMF says AI adoption must extend beyond these early use cases to deliver meaningful economic benefits.
“For the region, AI’s main promise is not about replacing office workers, but boosting productivity across the economy—helping informal firms manage inventory, enabling farmers to increase yields, and supporting mid-sized firms to transition to formality and export readiness,” the report reads.
The IMF is urging governments to prioritise investment in reliable electricity, affordable broadband, data infrastructure and digital skills to support wider AI adoption.
Many African countries, including Zimbabwe, Kenya, Ghana, Nigeria and Cameroon, continue to face electricity shortages, while broadband services remain costly and coverage is uneven.
The Fund believes stronger investment in power, connectivity, regional data infrastructure and digital skills would help unlock AI’s economic potential.
National Population Commission (NPC) has commenced the nationwide digital registration of births and deaths under the Electronic Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (E-CRVS) system to strengthen legal identity management and improve demographic data.
Speaking at a press briefing in Lokoja on Tuesday, Mr Afolabi Yori, federal commissioner representing Kogi, said the initiative became operational nationwide on July 1, through the VitalReg platform.
Yori described the development as a landmark in Nigeria’s civil registration system, noting that it would modernise birth and death registration through a technology-driven platform that meets international standards.
He said the digital platform would improve service delivery, strengthen data integrity and ensure that every birth and death occurring in Nigeria was accurately documented and securely stored.
According to him, civil registration is more than an administrative process, as it provides reliable statistics that support public policy formulation, resource allocation and national development planning.
“Nigeria records an estimated five million births annually, yet millions of births and deaths remain unregistered.
“Birth registration coverage currently stands at about 57 per cent nationwide, while death registration remains below 20 per cent,” he said.
The commissioner said that the commission had established 4,011 functional registration centres across the country’s 774 local government areas and was working to expand the number to about 8,000.
He added that the commission was strengthening collaboration with stakeholders to improve the capacity of registration personnel and ensure prompt documentation of vital events through the VitalReg platform.
Yori said the platform would provide faster registration services, 24-hour online access, digital certificate issuance where applicable, and reduce paperwork, waiting time and unnecessary travel.
He disclosed that the platform was being operated under a Public-Private Partnership with Barnks-forte Technologies Ltd. as the commission’s technical partner to ensure system availability, cybersecurity and continuous technological improvement.
He called on parents, healthcare institutions, traditional and religious leaders, civil society organisations, development partners and the media to support the initiative by encouraging the prompt registration of births and deaths.
Earlier, Samuel Omonakpeme, director in Kogi, NPC State, described the commencement of the digital registration system as another milestone in efforts to strengthen Nigeria’s Civil Registration and Vital Statistics system.
Omonakpeme stated that the initiative aligns with the Federal Government’s digital transformation agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals, particularly Goal 16.9, which seeks to provide legal identity for all.
He appreciated the Federal Government, the leadership of the commission, UNICEF and other development partners for supporting the implementation of the initiative.
The state director also urged parents, guardians, health institutions, community leaders, religious organisations and the media to mobilise public support for the timely registration of all births and deaths.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reported that ICT personnel of the commission, led by Ehimoni Kolawole, conducted a live demonstration of the digital birth registration process using the VitalReg platform.
The demonstration showed that the registration process captures the biodata of both parents, while at least one parent must possess a valid National Identification Number (NIN) to complete the registration of a newborn.
Yola Electricity Distribution Company (YEDC) has alerted its customers to a fraudulent message circulating on social media, falsely claiming that electricity consumers can receive an additional 20 per cent bonus units when recharging their prepaid meters through unofficial channels.
In a statement issued by the company’s management on Monday, YEDC described the claim as false and urged customers to disregard the misleading information, stressing that it did not originate from the company.
According to the statement, YEDC does not offer bonus electricity units through individuals, agents, personal bank accounts, phone numbers, or social media contacts.
The company advised customers to purchase electricity tokens only through approved cashless payment platforms, including the YEDC Pay App, OPay, Interswitch, and other authorised vending channels, or to visit the nearest YEDC office for assistance.
YEDC also cautioned customers against sharing their meter details or personal information, or making payments to unauthorised persons claiming to represent the company.
The company further urged customers to rely exclusively on information disseminated through its official communication channels to avoid falling victim to fraud.
The management thanked customers for their continued cooperation and reaffirmed its commitment to serving them.
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