By Samantha Rockson
The AfroGlobal potential is crystallising with Africa to become one of the world’s biggest free trade zones. From January 1st, 2021 the world’s largest single market opened by enabling all but 1 of the 54 African nations to begin trading. The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) was founded in 2018 by the African Continental Free Trade Agreement made up of all 55 African nations apart from Eritrea, being the only country not signing the agreement.
As a proud Ghanaian, I’m happy to say that Ghana serves as the secretariat of the AfCFTA and was commissioned and handed over to the AU by Nana Akufo-Addo on August 17, 2020.
The agreement requires members of the union to remove tariffs from 90% of goods, allowing free access to commodities, goods and services across the continent in a market of about 3.2 billion people with a combined GDP of about 2.5 trillion dollars; trading will be practically duty free (no tariff, no taxes). The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa estimates that the agreement will boost intra-African trade, by 52 percent by 2022. According to The World Bank, the trade deal will increase the African continent’s income by 4.5 billion dollars within the next 15 years. This also means an increase in wages especially for women traders in Africa; the deal is also projected to lift 30 million Africans out of extreme poverty.
On another related point to trade unions, I will share some of the content of a discussion that I had with a trusted Associate of Your Magazine, Lawrence Lartey. Lawrence highlighted in our discussion that the AfCFTA is obviously bigger news than Brexit, in terms of trade union agreements and all the fuss about the UK leaving the European Union (EU) presents a great opportunity for the UK in relation to Africa, according to Lawrence.
Lawrence’s point was that before Brexit, the UK could not trade with any other country without permission from the EU but now the UK has opened its market to a larger potential pool of global trading partners including Africa.
I am clearly a proud African, but I am also proud to be British. I do actually think that despite the challenges in the global and UK economy with Covid-19, my thoughts have always been that the UK are innovative leaders when it comes to progress in the west.
I have always compared the UK’s relationship with the US to Ghana’s relationship to Nigeria (strategy combined with market potential). To clarify my point, Ghana’s position as the secretariat of the AfCFTA will by no doubt be strengthened by its relationship with Nigeria, which is currently the largest economy in Africa (overtaking South Africa) and in fact the largest market potential on the continent.
Anyway….back to the trade deal, even though there are concerns including whether Africa lacks the proper infrastructure to be able to successfully implement this new trade agreement and also what the agreement might mean for the continent’s smaller and/or poorer economies, the general consensus is that the free trade agreement would enable and facilitate the AfroGlobal vision and drive for unity and economic progress for the continent.
Further to the Free Trade Deal, another landmark event for Africa is the African Passport. Many of you might already know about the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) passport which is a common passport that can be used within the African sub-region, that is also recognized for international travel. Most of you would not know about The African Union Passport, which exempt bearers from having to obtain any visas for all 55 states in Africa. The passport was launched in 2016 and was due to be implemented in 2020 but delays has meant that the passport rolled out in 2021!!
The potential of the AfroGlobal turning point sheds light and emphasise on the need for good business practice and operations across Africa. The AfroGobal Standard is an accreditation recognition and Best Practice Framework for organisations. The Standard aims to recognise, celebrate and encourage sustainable operations in terms of global impact, inclusion and diversity in human capital and positive community impact.
The AfCFTA and the African Union Passport will no doubt significantly increase business activity in Africa, as the final frontier market that is foundational to the global economy. It is therefore essential for us as a community to influence on how business operations are regulated, to ensure that businesses positively contribute to the communities that they serve in Africa and beyond.
These are exciting times for Africa and indeed the AfroGlobal community as a whole, as The African Continental Free Trade Area partnered with the African Union Passport, facilitates the unrestrained movement of people and goods across the continent, presenting an AfroGlobal potential like no other.
Related information and resources;
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/African_Union_Passport
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/African_Continental_Free_Trade_Area
Your Magazine 
Leave a comment