The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) will this year launch a transit scheme for trucks moving along the Abidjan-Lagos corridor to deposit a guarantee bond to enable them to cross over to other countries. The initiative, according to the Secretary-General of the AfCFTA Secretariat, Wamkele Mene, is to reduce costs to the private sector. […]
Tag: AfCFTA
Stanchart projects $1tn Africa exports by 2035
The Standard Chartered Bank has projected that Africa’s total exports would reach $1 trillion by 2035, with a potential 29 per cent increase after the full implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). This was revealed at the launch of a comprehensive report on the AfCFTA to empower businesses and stakeholders to take […]
50% of Africans lack access to sufficient food — Report
Six hundred and fifty million people in Africa lack economic or physical access to sufficient food, the 2023 Africa Agriculture Status Report has revealed. This figure represents 50 per cent of the continent’s population. The report, which was launched at the Africa Food Systems Forum (AFSF) 2023 in Dar-es-Salam, Tanzania, has therefore called for a […]
EU injects €120m into West Africa exports
The European Union (EU) has invested €120 million to boost the competitiveness of exports on the international market from Ghana and the other West African countries. In Ghana, over GH¢100 million has been injected into three main value chains, namely cassava, mango and pineapple, and cosmetics and personal care products. The investment in Ghana was […]
Bill to protect consumer rights in the offing
The government is rigorously working to pass a comprehensive Consumer Protection Bill to bolster consumer protection regime in Ghana, the caretaker Minister of Trade and Industry, Samuel Jinapor, has told Parliament. The overarching object of the bill is to protect, secure and defend the rights of consumers through a structured institutional mechanism and legal framework […]
Stop $88bn illegal outflow from Africa – Akufo-Addo urges states
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has called on African nations to collaborate and institute stringent measures to stem the disturbing annual illicit outflows of $88 billion from the continent. He said stern attention was required to arrest the situation immediately because the phenomenon was depriving Africa of significant resources that could be used to support […]
New Year School calls for interest rate structure under AfCFTA
The 2023 Annual New Year School and Conference has ended in Accra with a call on the Ministry of Finance to develop a differential interest rate structure for businesses under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). Participants in the 74th edition of the conference recommended that the ministry work with the Bank of Ghana […]
First AfCFTA trading – Ghana tiles, Rwanda goods take lead
Ghana has issued its first certificate of full commercial trading to a ceramic tiles production company to export its products under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Guided Trade initiative. In the same vein, the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) has received the first consignment of goods under the initiative from […]
Major breakthrough for AfCFTA; Agreement reached on 88% tradeable products
The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement has made a major breakthrough, as its Council of Ministers has now agreed on a criteria to determine the origin of 88 per cent of all products on the tariff books across the continent. Technically known as the Rules of Origin, it is the level of value […]
Gabby Otchere-Darko grabs top Commonwealth job in Ghana
A New Patriotic Party (NPP) stalwart, Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko, has been appointed the new chair of the Ghana hub of the Commonwealth Enterprise and Investment Council (CWEIC). CWEIC is a commercial, not-for-profit membership organisation with an official mandate from the Commonwealth Heads of Government to facilitate trade and investment throughout the 54 Commonwealth member nations. Otchere-Darko is one […]
Lack of Transportation of goods by sea cited as hindrance to AFCFTA
Lack of proper means of transporting goods to countries in the sub-region by sea is becoming a hindrance to the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA). Industry players have expressed the need for government to provide reliable vessels that can aid in the transportation of goods to countries like Liberia, Gambia, Guinea, and many others. […]
Encouraging competition in AfCFTA: Govt waives import duties
The government has waived import duties on imported equipment, machines and raw materials for local manufacturing companies to enable them to become competitive in the global marketplace. Since 2017, the government has also reduced some taxes, and in some cases completely removed them, provided some critical infrastructure and simplified some trade procedures to boost local […]