The Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) noted that the continent is to gain more than $70 billion from internal trading, overshadowing the international financial aid to the continent, Nigerian daily newspaper Punch reported.
"If African countries came together and achieved just one percentage increase in trade amongst itself, we would earn $70 billion, which will be higher than the $58 billion given by donors as development assistance," Chief of Staff of the AfCFTA Secretariat, Silver Ojakol was quoted by the media as saying during the 2023 RIIF.
He added that great gains will be made if small and medium enterprises cooperate and adhere to the principles of the AfCFTA to overcome trade barriers.
Ojakol also highlighted that the AfCFTA agreement, eliminating trade barriers, is intended for the SMEs and not for big corporations, the outlet revealed.
"The agreement was designed and framed for the women and young men who on a daily basis face challenges across the continent when crossing neighbouring borders to trade in goods and services," the official underlined.
In addition, the Executive Director of the Center for Regional Integration in Africa, Prof Lehlohonolo Tlou stressed how significant it is to develop and reinforce the SMEs so that they are able to overcome intra-Africa trade barriers and produce what the continent needs, the media said.
Moreover, according to the newspaper, Tlou highlighted that since the establishment of the African Union, the purpose of which is to promote international cooperation and facilitate economic development, trade volume within the continent is still at the level of 16%.
"Africa still produces what it does not consume and consumes what it does not produce," he was cited as saying.
Speaking about the 2023 RIIF conference, the official outlined that one of the purposes of the event was to strengthen SMEs and encourage them to enhance cooperation for creating regional value chains.
"The 2023 RIIF conference was convened as part of measures to raise awareness of the benefits of the AfCFTA, build capacity for SMEs to access regional markets; and encourage SMEs to explore partnerships for establishing regional value chains," he noted.
This was echoed by Ronney Ncwadi, Full Professor and Director of the School of Economics, Development and Tourism at Nelson Mandela University, who said in late August that SMEs are the key factor in fostering economic growth and inclusivity through cross-border African trade.
Commenting on the issue, Afreximbank Vice President George Elombi in an exclusive interview for Sputnik Africa noted that intra-African trade will grow if carried out in local currencies.