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The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) has called on Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) to work closely with it to overcome trade barriers.
The Secretary General of AfCFTA, Wamkele Mene, made the call in his message to the 2023 Regional Integration Issues Forum (RIIF) in Accra, Ghana.
Mene, who was represented by the Director General of the AfCFTA Secretariat, Silver Ojakol, explained the importance of the AfCFTA to MSMEs, noting that the agreement is not for large companies.
The event was organized by the Center for Regional Integration in Africa (CRIA) and the African Capacity Building Foundation (ACBF) in collaboration with the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA), and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat, with support from Afreximbank.
A statement from the organizer told Mene that: “The agreement was designed for women and young people who face daily problems in the middle of the country when traveling borders to trade in goods and services.
“If African countries join together and have a one percent increase in trade between themselves, we will have $70 billion, higher than the $58 billion provided by the aid as a development aid.”
In his speech, the Rector, Ghana Institute of Management and Public Affairs (GIMPA), Professor Samuel Bonsu, said that Africa is the youngest, stressing the need for intra-African trade to exchange resources so that the property is better. time.
The statement explained that the RIIF is an educational tool and a guide for stakeholders on regional integration and continental trade activities.
The 2023 RIIF aims to increase awareness of the AfCFTA and its benefits for SMEs, and strengthen the ability of SMEs to participate in intra-African trade.
The two-day SME conference has as its theme ‘Breaking down business barriers for AfCFTA Acceleration.’
The conference brought together over 150 people from different African countries, including government officials, business leaders, academics, and civil society representatives.
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