Lagos State is emerging as a strategic hub for economic growth, with Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu reaffirming the state’s vital role in driving opportunities presented by the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AFCFTA). Speaking at the 51st Annual General Meeting of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) held in Lekki, Governor Sanwo-Olu highlighted the significance of Read More…
A pan-African payment platform was inaugurated on Thursday by the trio of the African Union, African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) secretariat. Known as the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS), it is a cross-border, financial market platform that enables payment transactions across Africa. It is hoped that it Read More…
African Union (AU) Chairperson Cyril Ramaphosa and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed have congratulated Africans for starting trading under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). Abiy tweeted: “Congratulations to our continent for the beginning of trading under AfCTA. The new frontier for Africa is indeed regional integration, where minds are open to ideas and Read More…
The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement comes into effect on January 1, 2021, but Zambia is one of the 21 countries that have not yet deposited their instruments of ratification. Zambia’s Minister of Commerce, Trade and Industry, Christopher Yaluma, disclosed at a media briefing in Lusaka on Thursday that the official launch of Read More…
Customs officials from around Africa have supported the adoption of continental guidelines to facilitate the free flow of cross-border trade amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the UN Economic Commission for Africa said on Saturday. The decision was taken ahead of the start of trading under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) on 1 January, 2021. Read More…
Mr Adeniyi Adebayo, Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, says the Federal Executive Council’s approval of ratification of African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement demonstrates, globally, Nigeria’s economic leadership position on the continent. FEC on Wednesday approved the ratification of the AfCFTA agreement which Nigeria signed on July 7, 2019, in Niamey during the Read More…
Advocates of women entrepreneurs have identified inadequate finance and information as topmost challenges among the leading Non-Tariff Barriers (NTBs) facing African businesswomen. The advocates stated this on Wednesday during a webinar on the Trade Easier Platform, a mechanism for reporting, monitoring and eliminating NTBs under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). According to them, Read More…
Africa possesses a more powerful tool in the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) for accelerating regional and economic integration, the UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) has said. The Executive Secretary of the United Nations body, Ms Vera Songwe, stated this on Tuesday in a virtual panel discussion to mark the inaugural Africa Integration Read More…
Dr Amy Jadesimi, Managing Director of Lagos Deep Offshore Logistics (LADOL) base, a logistics and engineering facility, says local production is key to servicing trade in the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement. Jadesimi said in Lagos on Friday that the trade should not just be about importing from wealthy countries and distributing them Read More…