Thursday, June 11, 2026 Introduction: The Missing Link in Africa’s Textile Ambitions Africa’s cotton, textile, and apparel (CTA) sector possesses many of the ingredients required to become a globally competitive textile manufacturing hub. It produces significant quantities of cotton, has…
The implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) has created renewed optimism around Africa’s ability to strengthen regional manufacturing, increase intra-African trade, and improve participation in global value chains. Yet the analysis presented in the ODI report on…
The World Trade Organization’s World Trade Report 2023 highlights a critical reality shaping modern trade competitiveness: reducing tariffs alone is no longer sufficient to drive export growth. As global supply chains become increasingly interconnected, the efficiency with which goods move…
Tuesday, June 9, 2026 Why fabric dependency, local content requirements, and regional value chains matter more than many exporters realise. Introduction: The Trade Barrier Most People Never See Across Africa’s cotton, textile, and apparel (CTA) sector, there is a persistent…
Source: United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) | Geneva, 2026 Overview The Trade and Development Foresights 2026 is UNCTAD’s latest update on the global economic outlook, building on its flagship Trade and Development Report 2025. The report assesses…
Thursday, June 4, 2026 Introduction: The Promise and the Reality Over the past two decades, Africa has achieved something that many developing regions continue to pursue: extensive preferential access to some of the world’s largest consumer markets. Through the African…
As the world races to meet climate targets, international investment in clean energy technology and the transfer of knowledge and skills have become urgent priorities. A new UNCTAD policy brief examines how international investment agreements (IIAs) can be redesigned to…
Thursday, May 7, 2026 A system-level analysis of value leakage across cotton, yarn, fabric, and apparel, and what it means for Africa’s industrial future Introduction: Following the Value, Not Just the Product Most discussions about Africa’s cotton, textile, and apparel…
Source: UNCTAD Global Trade Update | April 2026 Global trade in goods and services reached approximately $35 trillion in 2025, an increase of around $2.5 trillion, or nearly 7.5%, compared to 2024. Goods accounted for roughly $1.8 trillion of that…
The European Commission’s sustainability due diligence framework marks a decisive shift in how companies, and by extension, their suppliers, are evaluated within global markets. The policy requires firms operating in or supplying into the European Union to identify, prevent, mitigate,…