Tuesday, September, 15, 2026 Introduction The logic of a free trade agreement appears straightforward in reducing tariffs, opening markets and allowing businesses to trade more easily across borders. For Africa, the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is intended to…
The final question may be the most important because AfCFTA implementation is not the responsibility of a single institution. A cross-border textile shipment may interact with customs authorities, standards agencies, ministries of trade, ports, border agencies, transport providers, financial institutions…
Digitalisation offers one of the strongest opportunities to reduce trade friction across Africa, but only if it is used to redesign processes rather than simply reproduce existing bureaucracy in electronic form. Uploading a paper form to a digital platform does…
One of the least visible costs of African trade is the cost of time. A shipment that takes four days instead of two does not only arrive two days later. The delay can affect inventory, working capital, warehouse requirements, production…
If customs inefficiencies represent one source of friction, non-tariff barriers represent another. Tariffs are relatively easy to identify and quantify. Non-tariff barriers can be embedded within the regulatory systems through which businesses must operate; licensing requirements, technical standards, certification procedures,…
The first test of AfCFTA happens at the border. A trade agreement may establish preferential access between African economies, but businesses experience that agreement through customs procedures, documentation requirements, inspections, clearance times, and the predictability of moving goods from one…
Wednesday, September 09, 2026 Introduction For an apparel manufacturer, completing production is only one part of fulfilling an order. Once garments leave the factory, they still have to move through a chain of transport, documentation, customs clearance, border controls, warehousing,…
Friday, September 4, 2026 Introduction The African Continental Free Trade Area has changed the ambition of African economic integration. By creating a framework for reducing tariffs and establishing preferential access across a continental market, AfCFTA offers African manufacturers an opportunity…
For Africa’s textile and apparel industry, preferential access to international markets has long been viewed as an important pathway to export growth. But market access, by itself, does not guarantee industrial development. As Africa looks towards AGOA 2028, an important…
Tuesday, September 01, 2026i Introduction The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is an agreement intended to create a single African market in which goods produced within the continent can benefit from preferential treatment. But before a product can receive…