African Development Bank supports forum to boost trade in Africa

Bamidele Famoofo

The African Development Bank has lent support to the Biashara Africa 2024 Business Forum aimed at enhancing trade on the continent of Africa.

The meeting, organized by the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), brought together industry leaders, policymakers and government representatives to promote African trade and foster economic growth on the continent. This year’s forum was themed “Dare to Invent the Future of the AfCFTA.”

As part of ongoing institutional support to the AfCFTA Secretariat, an African Development Bank delegation to the forum included Acting Director for the Bank’s Industrial and Trade Development department Ousmane Fall, Trade Policy Officer Abou Fall and Trade Facilitation Officer Rachael Nsubuga.

During the opening ceremony President Paul Kagame of Rwanda and AfCFTA champion emphasized connectivity across the continent in his remarks.

“How well we adapt as Africa to crisis depends on how strongly connected, we are,” Kagame said, urging governments to strengthen governance and institutions to prioritize implementation of AfCFTA protocols on trade in goods, services and movement of people for efficient trade.

Fall delivered a statement underscoring the Bank’s commitment to support African member countries through a comprehensive strategy to address investments tacking policy and regulation, corridors infrastructure, technology and connectivity constraints.

He noted that the African Development Bank has been very active in addressing access to trade finance as a major impediment to productivity. So far, the Bank has facilitated more than 3,000 trade transactions involving 170 financial institutions in all regional member countries  for a cumulative trade value of over $12 billion since the inception of The Bank Trade Finance Programme.

Africa accounts for only two percent of global production, although it is most integrated in global value chains, but in the less profitable segments of value chains, Fall said.

The Biashara 2024 Business Forum held business exhibitions and side events on diverse topics such as unlocking the trade potential of Africa; trade finance; value chains; partnerships for Africa’s trade; and business to business events.

The AfCFTA is the world’s largest free trade area bringing together the 55 countries of the African Union (AU) and eight regional economic communities. The overall mandate of the AfCFTA is to create a single continental market with a population of about 1.3 billion people and a combined GDP of approximately $3.4 trillion.