Botswana embarked on the development of the National Implementation Strategy for the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) through a consultative forum to drive economic diversification and intra-African trade growth, the Ministry of Trade and Entrepreneurship said.
"The strategy will enable us to align Botswana's areas of comparative advantage with continental demand, with the ultimate goal of diversifying our economy," Deputy Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Trade and Entrepreneurship Goemeone Mogomotsi stated at the National Consultative Forum on the AfCFTA Implementation Strategy.
The AfCFTA is not just a trade agreement, but a gateway to Botswana's economic transformation, which will include integrating into continental value chains, ultimately driving job creation and industrialization, the Trade Ministry's official noted.
"We fully recognize that reaping the benefits of the AfCFTA is not automatic. It requires deliberate strategic interventions at both the national and regional levels," Mogomotsi emphasized.
Moreover, the AfCFTA is a "game-changer," poised to create the world's largest free trade area and unlock unprecedented economic potential of African nations, Director of the Regional Integration and Trade Division at the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) Stephen Karingi said.
"This agreement offers Botswana a chance to move beyond its reliance on diamonds," the UNECA official pointed out at the forum.