Accra 18 March 2025. The Africa Continental Free Trade Area AfCFTA Secretariat and TradeMark Africa TMA announced strategic cooperation formalised through the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding MOU marking a significant step towards advancing action on AfCFTA plans and commitment to promote intraAfrican trade. The MOU signing took place at the AfCFTA Secretariat headquarters in Accra Ghana and was headlined by HE Wamkele Mene AfCFTA SecretaryGeneral of the AfCFTA Secretariat and Dave Beer TMA CEO.
The partnership is built on the shared commitment of the AfCFTA Secretariat and TMA to accelerate Africas economic integration and trade expansion ensuring that trade facilitation efforts translate into real economic impact across the continent. By addressing barriers to trade thus improving border efficiency and enhancing digital trade infrastructure, this collaboration will support businesses especially MSMEs in accessing new markets and strengthening regional value chains.
The AfCFTA which aims to create a single market of 13 billion people with a combined annual GDP of US34 trillion is designed to both eliminate tariff and nontariff barriers to Intra Africa trade thereby improving market access and increasing productivity leading to the socioeconomic development of Africa. On the other hand TMA works to increase sustainable and inclusive intra African trade and exports to the rest of the world through improved trade facilitation leading to trade growth and prosperity of the African Continent.
The Secretariat and TMA will cooperate towards the implementation of this MoU in ten 10 areas customs transit and trade Facilitation trade and transport corridors development of standards elimination of nontariff and technical barriers customs and border process digital transformation and ecommerce women and youth in trade engagement with Africas private sector regional value chains and investment export growth and diversification and capacity building and research joint training programs on cross border trade trade facilitation market entry strategies and compliance with AfCFTA rules. The AfCFTA Secretariat and TMA will set up technical working groups to drive delivery across these areas of focus.
Launched on the 5 th anniversary of the AfCFTA this partnership underscores HE Hailemariam Desalegn Boshes TradeMark Africas Board Chair and former Prime Minister for Ethiopia remarks reaffirming TradeMark Africas commitment to supporting AfCFTA implementation by leveraging its 15 years of experience in trade facilitation and engagement with continental and global institutions. Speaking during a public lecture delivered soon after the MoU signing between the two institutions HE Desalegn highlighted ongoing joint efforts to enhance private sector participation and strengthen regional value chains including collaboration on trade facilitation initiatives within the AfCFTA framework We are proud to be working together to establish the Private Sector Unit within the Secretariat and to deliver fish value chain programming together.
Speaking on the significance of the partnership HE Wamkele Mene emphasised the practical impact of the collaboration This partnership reinforces our shared commitment to removing barriers to trade accelerating digital transformation and ensuring that businesses especially SMEs and womenled enterprises can fully benefit from the AfCFTA.
