Anglophone, Francophone countries converge on Accra for AfCFTA implementation

Owners of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) from Anglophone and Francophone countries on the continent have converged on Accra for a three-day workshop to share ideas on how to collaborate and navigate the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) implementation.  

The regional training workshop, which also saw some representatives from Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) and civil society organisations, also seeks to equip the participants with the knowledge they need to trade under the single African market.

The workshop, which opened last Tuesday is being held on the theme: “Bridging Anglophone and Francophone markets through trade facilitation, SME partnership and AfCFTA value chain”.

Key issues to be discussed include best practices for enhancing multi-stakeholder trade policy formulation and trade facilitation in the promotion of effective AfCFTA implementation, key elements of the AfCFTA agreement, significance of the protocols and how SMEs can apply the rules of origin to leverage the opportunities presented by the AfCFTA, among others.      

The workshop was jointly organised by the Centre for Regional Integration in Africa (CRIA) and the African Capacity Building Foundation (ACBF), with the support of the African Development Bank (AfDB) and Afreximbank.

Opening

In a speech read on his behalf by the West Africa Regional Trade Advisor AfCFTA, Abdul Kamara, the Secretary-General of AfCFTA, Wamkele Keabetswe Mene, described the AfCFTA as a transformative framework that sought to transition Africa from its traditional role as a supplier of raw materials to becoming a competitive producer of high-value goods and services.

However, he said the legacy of colonial divisions had left the continent with linguistic, legal and institutional disparities that complicated efforts towards regional and continental integration.

The workshop, he said, marked an important step towards addressing those challenges, adding, “By fostering collaboration across linguistic and regional divides, we can build the capacity needed to integrate our economies, create resilient value chains and ensure that no one is left behind in Africa's journey towards prosperity”. 

Initiatives 

Mr Kamara announced that as part of efforts to make it easier for businesses to trade seamlessly across linguistic and regional divides, the AfCFTA secretariat was implementing a robust Private Sector Engagement Strategy aimed at promoting regional production networks and creating opportunities for collaboration between Anglophone and Francophone countries continent-wide.

He also mentioned the Pan-African Payments and Settlement System (PAPSS) to facilitate seamless intra-African transactions, and platforms such as the rebranded AfCFTA Business Forum (Biashara Afrika) and the biennial Intra-Africa Trade Fair (IATF) as other initiatives that have become pivotal in fostering trade partnerships and knowledge sharing across the continent.

In addition to these, he said, the AU Protocol on Free Movement of Persons also facilitated cross-border travel and collaboration, breaking down barriers to integration and enabling seamless movement across the continent.

Support

The Executive Secretary of ACBF, Mamadou Biteye, explained that the workshop was part of ongoing efforts by his outfit to support African member countries in enhancing the domestication of trade agreements for effective implementation and improving MSMEs' awareness of trade agreements and their capacity to access related business opportunities.

He added that his outfit would organise such training and awareness workshops in 2025 across key Regional Economic Communities on the continent.

The Executive Director of CRIA, Professor Lehlohonolo Tlou, stressed the need for African countries to trade among themselves rather than with the rest of the world.

To ensure effective trade, she said it was important for the capacities of various government agencies on the continent to be strengthened to remove the bottlenecks such as language barriers to drive the single market agenda.