Break down trade barriers - AfDB chief

Break down trade barriers - AfDB chief
Published: 14 June 2019
Elimination of barriers could potentially spur Africa's trade by 53 percent and eventually double in the medium term, Akinwumi Adesina, president of Africa Development Bank has said. Adesina made the call during opening ceremony of the AfDB 2019 annual meetings, in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea under the theme: "Regional Integration for Africa's Economic Prosperity."

Regional integration gained momentum with the agreement on the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) in March 2018 and is now at the threshold of its launch next month.

The AfCFTA will constitute the world's largest free trade area, consolidating an integrated market of 1,3 billion consumers with a combined gross domestic product (GDP) of about US$3,3 trillion. It is estimated that Africa's GDP growth could reach 6 percent a year in a borderless continent.

Adesina underscored the urgent need to fast-track the continent's regional integration process in order to accelerate Africa's economic transformation.

"To integrate Africa, bring down the walls," Adesina said. "Apart and divided, Africa is weakened. Together and united, Africa will be unstoppable." Adesina urged African governments to work toward the elimination of non-tariff barriers.

"Pulling down non-tariff barriers alone, will spur trade by at least 53 percent, and potentially double trade," he said.

The opening ceremony was presided over by the host nation's President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo. Also in attendance were King Letsie III of Lesotho; President Félix Antoine Tshisekedi of the Democratic Republic of Congo; and Ambrose Mandvulo Dlamini, Prime Minister of eSwatini. High-level government officials from Rwanda, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, and Côte d'Ivoire were also present.

In his opening speech, President Obiang Nguema Mbasogo recalled that Equatorial Guinea, once one of the poorest countries in the world, has since been radically transformed with one of the highest per capita incomes on the continent.

"For me, development is not about per capita income, it is about expanding the opportunities for the people to live a more dignified life," Obiang Nguema Mbasogo said.

"Equatorial Guinea is open for business. We are committed to regional integration for shared prosperity. We count on the African Development Bank to help us achieve economic diversification and the consolidation of social equality."

Regional integration is one of the Bank's strategic High 5 agendas to rapidly advance Africa's economic transformation.

In the past several years, the AfDB has invested over US$13 billion in the central African region. "And for every dollar invested, the region has leveraged $36, an incredible rate of return of 36 times," Adesina noted.

The Bank's investments include the construction of the central African fibre optic network that connects the population with faster and less expensive access to the Internet, and is boosting businesses and regional integration.

More than 2 000 participants are attending the annual meetings, a unique opportunity to share the bank's perspectives on the state of Africa's economy. The meetings also provides updates on the Bank's work and serves as a platform for the exchange of views on emerging issues shaping the future of the continent.

"There's excitement in the air on Africa's economic opportunities, and those opportunities are boundless. The newly ratified Africa Continental Free Trade Area will make Africa the largest free trade zone in the world, with a combined GDP of over US$3,3 trillion," Adesina said. - Business Writer/Break down trade barriers - AfDB chief
eBusiness Weekly
Elimination of barriers could potentially spur Africa's trade by 53 percent and eventually double in the medium term, Akinwumi Adesina, president of Africa Development Bank has said. Adesina made the call during opening ceremony of the AfDB 2019 annual meetings, in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea under the theme: "Regional Integration for Africa's Economic Prosperity."

Regional integration gained momentum with the agreement on the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) in March 2018 and is now at the threshold of its launch next month.

The AfCFTA will constitute the world's largest free trade area, consolidating an integrated market of 1,3 billion consumers with a combined gross domestic product (GDP) of about US$3,3 trillion. It is estimated that Africa's GDP growth could reach 6 percent a year in a borderless continent.

Adesina underscored the urgent need to fast-track the continent's regional integration process in order to accelerate Africa's economic transformation.

"To integrate Africa, bring down the walls," Adesina said. "Apart and divided, Africa is weakened. Together and united, Africa will be unstoppable." Adesina urged African governments to work toward the elimination of non-tariff barriers.

"Pulling down non-tariff barriers alone, will spur trade by at least 53 percent, and potentially double trade," he said.

The opening ceremony was presided over by the host nation's President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo. Also in attendance were King Letsie III of Lesotho; President Félix Antoine Tshisekedi of the Democratic Republic of Congo; and Ambrose Mandvulo Dlamini, Prime Minister of eSwatini. High-level government officials from Rwanda, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, and Côte d'Ivoire were also present.

In his opening speech, President Obiang Nguema Mbasogo recalled that Equatorial Guinea, once one of the poorest countries in the world, has since been radically transformed with one of the highest per capita incomes on the continent.

"For me, development is not about per capita income, it is about expanding the opportunities for the people to live a more dignified life," Obiang Nguema Mbasogo said.

"Equatorial Guinea is open for business. We are committed to regional integration for shared prosperity. We count on the African Development Bank to help us achieve economic diversification and the consolidation of social equality."

Regional integration is one of the Bank's strategic High 5 agendas to rapidly advance Africa's economic transformation.

In the past several years, the AfDB has invested over US$13 billion in the central African region. "And for every dollar invested, the region has leveraged $36, an incredible rate of return of 36 times," Adesina noted.

The Bank's investments include the construction of the central African fibre optic network that connects the population with faster and less expensive access to the Internet, and is boosting businesses and regional integration.

More than 2 000 participants are attending the annual meetings, a unique opportunity to share the bank's perspectives on the state of Africa's economy. The meetings also provides updates on the Bank's work and serves as a platform for the exchange of views on emerging issues shaping the future of the continent.

"There's excitement in the air on Africa's economic opportunities, and those opportunities are boundless. The newly ratified Africa Continental Free Trade Area will make Africa the largest free trade zone in the world, with a combined GDP of over US$3,3 trillion," Adesina said.

- eBusiness Weekly
Tags: AfDB,

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