Tunisia Initiates Steps Toward Adoption of an Electronic Platform for the Issuance of Certificates of Origin under the AfCFTA

Tunisia’s Ministry of Trade and Export Development is preparing to launch an electronic platform to digitize the issuance of AfCFTA Certificates of Origin, a reform expected to streamline trade operations, enhance transparency, and reduce administrative costs. Announced by the Tunisian Minister of Trade during the AfCFTA Tunisian Exporters’ Day on 27 October 2025, the initiative builds on existing progress, with 350 certified trade operations already completed since Tunisia issued its first AfCFTA certificate in May 2023.

The Ministry also plans to establish specialized committees involving the Chambers of Commerce and Industry to promote regional integration and strengthen African economic complementarities, reaffirming intra-African trade as a strategic priority within Tunisia’s export policy.

Across Africa, there has been a growing momentum toward digitalizing Certificates of Origin (CoO) under preferential trade frameworks. Regional Economic Communities (RECs) such as COMESA, SADC and ECOWAS are at the forefront of this trend. Some of them have developed or are implementing electronic platforms that enable real-time exchange of origin data among member states, supporting preferential market access and minimizing paperwork. The AfCFTA Secretariat is planning the development of a similar platform as well.

This shift aligns with global trends: the World Customs Organization (WCO) recently launched a Digital Interconnectivity Framework for the secure, real-time electronic exchange of preferential Certificates of Origin between customs administrations, signaling a broader move toward a paperless trade ecosystem. Yet, one critical question remains: how will these platforms handle self-certification of origin? Across much of Africa, self-certification of origin remains largely institution-based, requiring exporters to obtain an authorization from a competent authority before issuing them, except in cases their transactions are under an established minimum threshold. This manual approach reflects persistent trust challenges, including concerns over traders’ reliability, compliance of their goods with rules of origin and risks of potential frauds. Full transition to digital self-certification will therefore depend on the establishment of robust verification (post-clearance) mechanisms to ensure both reliability and integrity of self-declarations of origin within the context of preferential trade frameworks. We have analyzed these aspects and evolving dynamics in a forthcoming article that will be published in the next World Customs Journal edition (April 2026), that has just completed the peer review process. Stay tuned!

The table below presents an overview of African Regional Economic Communities (RECs) that have developed (or are in the process of implementing) electronic platforms for managing Certificates of Origin.