Despite big obstacles, AfCFTA viewed as key to weaving new trade and industrial tapestry

In the grand tapestry of international commerce, Africa’s 55 nations have stood as individual threads rather than a unified fabric of economic opportunity. But a new era of collaboration being ushered in by the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Agreement promises to harness the continent’s vast potential and foster economic prosperity for its people. Launched in 2021, this African Union (AU) treaty aims to integrate the country’s economies through facilitating the easy, cheap flow of goods and services. Coupled with complementary measures such as the adoption of open visa policies, this will create a megamarket of 1.3-billion people, which, according to United Nations (UN) projections, will increase to about 2.5-billion people by 2050, with a corresponding surge in business and consumer spending from close to $3-trillion currently to about $16.12-trillion.