Accra, 9 July 2022 (TDI): The Secretariat of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) announced the establishment of the AfCFTA Hub on Friday.
The Hub is a digital powerhouse that aims to connect digital retailers, financial institutions, and logistics partners.
Therefore, through the support from the AfCFTA Hub, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) will be able to enhance their power in the trading system.
It has been well known that SMEs are at the core of the AfCFTA structure. During the meeting, Wamkele Mene, the Secretary-General of the AfCFTA gave his remarks at the launch of the AfCFTA Hub.
Meanwhile, other senior attendees also participated in the online meeting. Honored guests included Hakainde Hichilema, the current President of Zambia, and Miriem Bensalah Chaqroun, the Director of the Renault Group.
Besides representatives of politicians and entrepreneurs, Sidi Ould Tah, the Director-General of the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA) also attended the meeting.
Simultaneously, Ngozi Okonjo Iweala, the Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO) participated in the meeting. William Clinton, the 42nd President of the United States joined the meeting as well.
Context of the AfCFTA Hub for Digital Training Corridor
According to the World Economic Forum, AfCFTA has the potential to bring intra-African trade a 32% increase by 2030. At the same time, AfCFTA could lift 30 million people out of extreme poverty.
To achieve the above goals and realize the full implementation, AfCFTA has been working significantly on continental digitalization.
Coordinately, on July 8, the African Union (AU) held the Boma event sponsored by Ecobank. Following the African Integration Day on July 7th, the Boma event aims to take stock of progress made towards the AU’s Agenda 2063.
As AU highlighted on Integration Day, the AfCFTA is a changer for the continent to make progress in trade integration.
AfCFTA Hub’s establishment at this special moment showed that AfCFTA is ready to make difference through digitalized ways.
Digital Training can not only provide entrepreneurs more opportunities but also enable companies to make full use of digital customs platforms.
The development of trade integration needs the coordination of both high-level policies and practical participation. Therefore, the launch of the AfCFTA Hub for Digital Training has undoubtedly significance.
Chensi is majored in diplomacy. Her main research interests include Sino-African relations, African foreign affairs, public diplomacy and sustainable development.
