AfCFTA Secretariat Urges Acceleration of Digital Trade and Regional Value Chains
The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat has called for a sharper focus on digital trade tools, stronger regional value chains and the removal of barriers that continue to suppress intra-African commerce.
Speaking in Accra at a farewell lecture for Professor Benedict Okey Oramah, President and Chairman of Afreximbank, AfCFTA Secretary-General Wamkele Mene said the partnership between the two institutions had laid “critical foundations” for Africa’s integration but now needed to shift to “accelerated implementation.”
Secretary-General Mene highlighted initiatives such as the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS), the Adjustment Fund, and the MANSA due diligence platform as early successes in lowering transaction costs and fostering trust. “These are more than programmes. They express a single vision: a self-reliant Africa that trades with itself, invests in its own potential, and shapes its future with purpose,” he said.
He cautioned, however, that progress would falter unless structural impediments were addressed. “We must keep borders efficient, reduce non-tariff barriers, and make rules of origin work at the factory and at the border. And we must ensure women, youth, and small businesses are not left out of the AfCFTA market,” Mene added.
For his part, Prof Oramah reflected on Afreximbank’s long-standing role in intra-African trade. He recalled that the lender launched its Intra-African Trade Strategy in 2016 with a $20bn commitment by 2022, a target that was surpassed. “More importantly, we made intra-African trade a bankable proposition,” he said.
Afreximbank has supported the AfCFTA Secretariat with financial resources, technical assistance and experts for negotiations and implementation. Through its African Trade Facilitation Programme (AFTRAF), the bank has onboarded more than 500 of Africa’s 600 commercial lenders, extending letters of credit confirmation lines and trade credit limits. Of the programme’s $8bn target, over $5bn has already been disbursed to directly finance cross-border trade.
