The African Trade Report, produced annually by the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), will be launched on 15th December.
This year’s report focuses on Informal Cross Border Trade (ICBT) and provides ground-breaking insights into the scale, composition and approaches to informal cross border trade in Africa. It is estimated that the formalisation of informal cross border trade could potentially increase official trade numbers by between 30-50%, depending on the region.
“ICBT has been a key contributor to job creation, income growth and household consumption, as well as to the development of competitive cross-border regional value chains” explained Prof. Benedict Oramah, President of Afreximbank, while emphasizing the importance of ICBT to the continent’s economies.
With trading under the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AFCFTA) scheduled to begin on January 1st, 2021, it has never been more pressing to understand this key aspect of African trade. The Report was done in collaboration with the UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA). According to Dr. Hippolyte Fofack, Chief Economist at Afreximbank, and Dr. David Luke, Head, African Trade Policy Centre at the ECA, this year’s report will help put in place the structures to better account for ICBT as well as help formalise these value chains.
The report covers a wide range of themes, all pertinent to harnessing the opportunity presented by the AfCFTA including the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on exports, both international and intra-African, commodity prices and economic growth.
The launch will feature a presentation of the report as well as a panel discussion looking at general aspects of trade in Africa and mechanisms to substantially boost these numbers through policy and strategic action. The panellists include some international experts such as Pamela Coke-Hamilton, Executive Director, International Trade Centre and the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr. Godwin Emefiele. Other speakers include Kolawole Sofola, Director of Trade, ECOWAS and Gerald Masila, Executive Director, East Africa Grain Council and a keynote address by Prof. Oramah.
